Has it come together all too late for the reigning AFLW premier Adelaide Crows?

AFLW premiers Adelaide has sent a warning to its national women’s league rivals that the Crows are not going away in the chase for the 2018 flag - but is it too late?

Adelaide’s Ruth Wallace, who finished with three goals against Carlton.

IT has taken five weeks for Adelaide to finally fulfil AFLW premiership coach Bec Goddard’s vision for a new-look, multi-dimensional Crows unit that would stay ahead of the field.

But with such a short, seven-week round-robin series, the grand plan might have come together all too late. And the recurrence of co-captain Erin Phillips’ right quad injury - the curse of the Crows season so far - could also prove damaging to Adelaide’s premiership defence.

The stand-out note of Adelaide’s 35-point win against Cartlon at The Parade on Saturday - when the Crows put up their highest score of the season (8.7) - was the unfolding of Goddard’s pre-season promise to add more firepower and remove predictability from the team’s attack.

Adelaide’s Erin Phillips tackles Carlton’s Sarah Hosking.

The quick-fire opportunism of energetic forwards Ruth Wallace and Eloise Jones at the goalfront has even allowed Goddard to concede last year’s cult-hero key forward, Sarah “Tex” Perkins, to work in the centre square.

A team that stumbled with two consecutive losses at the start of its premiership defence by appearing to rely on too few and a heavy injury list, Adelaide now appears loaded with playmakers - particularly with Courtney Cramey in command across half-back.

“She is such a clever ball user,” Goddard said of her All-Australian defender. “And she is not afraid to leave her player to help out in defence to win a clearance or kill a contest.”

Goddard explained her gamble with the powerful Perkins at centre bounce saying: “She is hard to defend. And between her and Erin (Phillips), they have the cleanest hands in our whole team.

“Perko’s hands are just lightning fast. She can drill a handball out, but it is soft enough for someone else to take and put (the ball) inside-50.”

Adelaide must win its remaining two round-robin games - against Fremantle in Darwin on Friday and against Colingwood in Melbourne on Sunday week - to be a chance of playing in the grand final on Saturday, March 24.

Adelaide’s Ruth Wallace looks to evade Carlton’s Nicola Stevens.

The final equation also requires both Brisbane and Melbourne to drop at least one game in the next fortnight.

Adelaide’s part of this equation could rest heavily on the recovery of Phillips, the AFLW’s best player. She hobbled out of Saturday night’s game at half-time - when Adelaide had a safe 23-point lead - again feeling her right quad.

“Erin had some ‘awareness’ (of the leg),” Goddard said. “And when an experienced athlete says that, you have to listen to her and her body because we want her for the next two games. Hopefully, three ...

“It was just a pre-caution. We were controlling the game, so we did not need to leave her out there. It was the responsible thing to do.”

Adelaide’s high-risk, high-speed game emphasises why the Crows will opposition teams struggle to stop a squad refusing to believe the season is shot.

“We have really positive talk (in the group),” Goddard said. “There are no constraints on them.”

FINAL EQUATION

HOW the Crows need the cards to fall if Adelaide is to defend its AFLW title in the grand final on Saturday, March 24.

CROWS

(2-1-2) 10 points

MUST beat Fremantle (Darwin) and Collingwood (Melbourne)

FINISHES with 18 points

THEN NEEDS

BRISBANE (12 points) to lose at least one of its matches against Collingwood and GWS to finish on 16 points

AND

MELBOURNE (12 points) to lose at least one of its matches against Carlton and W Bulldogs to finish on 16 points.

Originally published as Has it come together all too late for the reigning AFLW premier Adelaide Crows?