Jordan Dawson Q&A: Adelaide Crows captain opens up on finals, finding an edge and who’s flying on the track

Adelaide captain Jordan Dawson is excited about the new faces in the Crows leadership group, with one potential star ready to thrive. Read his exclusive Q&A.

After a stellar first season as captain individually, Jordan Dawson is determined for his second year as Adelaide skipper to be defined by the Crows getting back to the finals.

The Crows skipper also opens up on how his game has evolved, why he is backing in his sides’ defence, Matthews Nicks’ impending new contract and the one young gun who is flying under the radar.

Simeon Thomas-Wilson: Jordan, it has been a big start to the year for you so far, getting married and then being named as the Crows captain again...

Jordan Dawson: I suppose it has been an exciting year and a bit off-field and then on-field to remain captain, I would be pretty flat if I wasn’t obviously, but it has been a good start to the year and I’m pretty excited about where the club is heading.

Jordan Dawson will lead the Crows again in 2024. Picture: Dean Martin

Dawson married Milly Dutton earlier this year. Picture: Blake Heywood Sanders

STW: Has life changed much?

JD: No, pretty similar, it was a great few days and I’m really happy to be married and it was a great couple of days with Milly, our families and our close friends. Not much has changed off-field, just the title and a couple of rings, but I’m really happy and really fortunate.

STW: There’s four new faces in the leadership group for 2024, what do you feel that they can bring to it?

JD: I’m so excited about the guys who have stepped up in that role. Obviously, Tommy Doedee has gone out of it to Brisbane, but to have a number of guys who have said they wanted to step up in that role, obviously not everyone who wanted to be in the leadership group was able to join, Murph (Lachie Murphy), Wayne (Wayne Milera), Fog (Darcy Fogarty) and Hingey (Mitch Hinge) they will add different levels of experience and bring different thoughts. It is a diverse kind of group now and we all have our strengths and weaknesses. They are all very self-aware of not only just their footy but the off-field stuff as well and I think we can kind of cover the whole group now with a couple of extras there. I’m really excited for the group now.

STW: We all know about Murph’s great story of persistence, Wayne and Mitch have also had to overcome setbacks but with Darcy’s elevation into the group, what does he bring to it?

JD: He is just a very charismatic guy, the boys really feed off his energy and he is just really authentic in who he is. He is not afraid to challenge players and coaches and I think as we have seen with his ability to play at a really high level, we want him to get to that top-end consistency. In terms of what he brings to the group, obviously game day is almost it all for us but in terms of building a good culture around the club he plays a massive part in that.

STW: Do you hope this takes his game to another level? He arguably didn’t kick on in 2023 as much as many thought following his 2022.

JD: We always talk about those big guys taking time and I think without putting any added pressure on him, I think it is going to be good for him. He thrives off that kind of pressure of being accountable in that sort of space and having that extra responsibility of being in the leadership group, where he is even more looked up to than he has been in the past I think he will thrive off that. As I said he is a very charismatic and authentic guy, so for him I think it will be the push that might take his game to another level.

Darcy Fogarty celebrates a goal with Jordan Dawson. Picture: Mark Brake/Getty Images

STW: It’s your second season as the Crows captain? Have you changed as a captain or has your leadership style changed much?

JD: I think I was picked as a captain for a reason or multiple reasons so I am trying to stay true to them but you would be a bit silly to try not to evolve and become better in some areas. So I’m definitely aware of some areas that I want to keep growing and improving in. For me I am trying to stay pretty neutral in the way I kind of go about it and what I have brought to the team but I am also looking to improve in different areas individually and as a group. It is definitely a learning process, there are some things I am happy about, there are some things I would like to change from last year but that’s all a part of it I guess, it’s about growing.

STW: For some players being a first-year captain can impact their form, you were a first-time All-Australian and club best and fairest. Was there anything you did in particular that was behind your 2023?

JD: I think over the last few years, especially three or four years ago I realised that especially on game day when I communicate and direct my teammates and kind of stay involved in that sense I actually play better footy. So as cliche as that is my main goal last year was to win and I just wanted to perform at a base level of what was acceptable as a captain, you are going to have to adhere to team elements that you want to achieve. So I just wanted to really nail that team game and I think I found I ended up playing better footy off the back of that and learning the mid craft mid-year, just nailing my craft each week. I think the different from previous years was just really honing in on the intricacies on the mid stuff and that combined with a bit of confidence individually you never know where it can go.

STW: For a while outside the four walls the talk was around why aren’t you being played in the midfield, it happens and the results were great. How big is it for you being a midfielder this whole pre-season?

JD: Personally I hope it takes my game to another level, being able to train it and playing pretty much the full year in the mid and having a full pre-season at it. I can’t tell you what I have sort of gotten better at over this pre-season compared to the middle of the year but I know for a fact training it has helped my game. So we will see how the practice games and the start of the season goes, but I definitely feel like I am evolving as a player and as a teammate as well.

STW: What do you feel like the midfield is going to look like this year? Rory Laird missed out on the internal trial so Izak Rankine had a lot more time on the ball and looked really good.

JD: I think even at the back-end of last year we were a bit more of a moving, fluid midfield. It wasn’t as structured in terms of personnel. So I hope and the way we have been training, we have been getting guys like Ranks, Rash (Josh Rachele) and Peds (Luke Pedlar) those sort of guys in there more with guys like myself, Lairdy, Crouchy (Matt Crouch) and Sam Berry. So I am pretty excited about adding a bit of flair and a bit of extra class around the grunt work that myself, Lairdy and Crouchy do – probably more those two than myself to be honest. To add a bit of flair in there and kind of spin those guys through with us, I’m excited about playing with those guys more.

Dawson says he will stay true to the reasons why he was pick to lead the club. Picture: Michael Klein.

STW: At the Club Champion night you spoke about how excited you were about 2024 and what the group can do has this feeling been reinforced by how the team is travelling this pre-season?

JD: Yeah definitely but I think at this time of year everyone kind of gets a bit ahead of themselves and you probably think you are going a bit better than you are. You play against each other a lot so it does make it hard to gauge where you are but in terms of the last couple of pre-seasons I think our synergy as a group and the way we are training it has definitely felt a lot cleaner and crisper. So hopefully that means that we are trending in the right direction but the comp is that tight at the moment so if you start well and those fringe guys and those guys coming through get confidence you never know where your group can go. So I am really excited for the next month coming up.

STW: There’s a fair amount of expectation on the Crows now, the talk is that this has to be the year where you have to return to finals. How do you feel about the increased expectation on the team? Do you embrace them?

JD: The biggest thing is, we are professional athletes in a very high level sport. So if you don’t have those expectations on yourself you are probably in the wrong industry to be honest. Absolutely my goal with this group is to play finals, at this time of year if you don’t want to play finals then you are in the wrong game. So from my point of view yes there are expectations but personally I have more expectations on myself and on the group than anyone outside could put on us.

STW: The forward line was so potent for the Crows last year, there are some questions around the defence given Doedee has left and Nick Murray is out for a fair chunk of the year with his ACL injury. How do you feel like you can counter for those absentees?

JD: The whole second half of 2023 we didn’t have Doods, we were able to find a couple of guys. Joshy Worrell and Hingey, those guys have stepped up and are ready to take their game to the next level and I think Mark Keane day one of pre-season came back and you can see his a lot fitter and stronger than he was. So I am excited about those three guys and even James Borlase has been tracking really well. He showed he could play at the level at the back end of last year, Maxy Michalanney, Jordon Butts is coming back next week from his hammy. I know they are described as lesser likes externally in terms of the names we have down there but they are all pretty ruthless defenders and we have quite a good mix of people who can play tall and small so I think that is where the game is going to be honest, you have those 190 to 195cm guys who can kind of rotate between talls and smalls. It’s a pretty good looking backline.

STW: One guy you didn’t mention before was Dan Curtin, there’s a lot of excitement around him. What have you made of him and other draftees since they came to the club?

JD: They have all settled in really nicely. These guys get a lot of pressure put on them, especially in Adelaide and being a top draft pick. But we have to remember that he is just 18-years-old. He is 197cm tall and he is probably 95kg already. So he is just started to try and fill out his body. He had that knee hyperextension so he missed a few weeks mid-January. He is getting back into it now and trying to find his groove down in the backline. Obviously being a first-year player if you don’t train for a few weeks it is really hard to get back into it.

I have loved what they have all brought, they are all different and play to their strengths. I’m excited to see them progress over the year and you never know it is hard to say if they will play AFL footy this year but they all have AFL traits so I am excited.

Adelaide’s top pick Daniel Curtin. Picture: James Elsby

STW: Some observers have said Dan Curtin has shades of a young Jordan Dawson, have you seen them?

JD: Mate to be honest he is well past me at 18. He is a real specimen and he has a real willingness to learn, not saying that I didn’t have that. He is hungry and he has this real competitive drive where you can tell he is frustrated when things don’t go to plan at training. It is a really healthy thing to have and if he could transition into the mid one day he would be pretty special because he is a big boy.

STW: Nicksy or Tim Silvers said recently that you are doing a lot of scenario based training given the close games you lost in 2023? What does that entail, is it down to game plan or mental given this was the difference between you playing finals last year.

JD: I think it is a bit of both, we are definitely really nailing our close game when we are up or down plays and what we went from each line in those moments. Also we have a new sport pysch in and she has been awesome, her name is Rosie and she has implemented a few different things that we want to work through from the start of the game but it will also help us when we are in those close moments around thinking clearly and what we kind of need to implement as a group and individually. We have been training this very hard over the past two months and time will ultimately tell.

STW: What do you want to see from the pre-season games against Port and West Coast?

JD: I just want us to play our brand of footy. It is hard as we will have guys playing managed minutes and with six terms so it is a bit tricky and a bit awkward but I just want to see us play our game and I want the whole group to play with confidence and back in what we have done over the pre-season.

Dawson with senior coach Matthew Nicks. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos

STW: Do players want to see Matthew Nicks get a new contract before Round 1?

JD: He has been awesome for me and the group but in terms of the contract stuff that is above my head, I’ll leave that to Tim and the board to sort that out.

STW: Do players ever really talk about that?

JD: Not really, we barely even talk about each other’s contracts let alone the coaches. So that isn’t something our group ever really talks about.

STW: Given he is such a heart and soul figure at the club how big of a boost is it for players to see Rory Sloane back running and doing ball drills after his eye injury and it looked like his career was up in the air?

JD: Yeah Sloaney, I’ve only known him for a couple of years now but he is the most positive and welcoming and genuine guy I have ever met. So nobody will probably ever understand the extent of the injuries on his mental space because he is so positive and is such a nice guy he will never really let on if things are going bad. But to have him back after a pretty innocuous injury I suppose, it is always a big boost he is a past captain of the club and a legend and to see him back running at training really gives everyone a boost. It definitely lifts me and I think it did for other players.

Jake Soligo is one to watch in his third season. Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

STW: Was there a concern among the playing group that this might be it for Rory and his career given how important your sight is?

JD: Yeah definitely, I had concerns. Especially since we didn’t train that day when he had the surgery. There is always a part of you, no matter who it is if it was any teammate, and especially for it to be dealing with the eye. So I’m just really glad that he has back out there training and enjoying being back at the club.

STW: One final question from me, who should we look out for from the Crows who we haven’t really been speaking about?

JD: I think he is going under the radar because he isn’t out there at the moment but Jake Soligo. His pre-season as a whole before he did that ankle injury I was really impressed with how he was attacking it and especially physically he has started to shape up a bit better physically. He is still learning his body and what not. So to see the way he was training and his running and how clean he is below his knees and his ability to break tackles and lay tackles I’m really excited. He has had a bit of a hiccup with the ankle but I hope that he doesn’t lose any confidence for when he is back and he can show the hard work he has been putting in across the summer.

Originally published as Jordan Dawson Q&A: Adelaide Crows captain opens up on finals, finding an edge and who’s flying on the track