Crows’ selection balancing act

Brad Crouch (centre) and Tom Lynch (left) could return to the Adelaide team. Picture: Sarah Reed. Source: News Corp Australia

UNDERDOG Adelaide faces a delicate Showdown XXXVII selection balancing act which could make or break its teetering season.

Desperate to find the 22 "even contributors'' which coach Brenton Sanderson covets, the underachieving Crows have three key players banging down the door for selection against Port Adelaide — last year's leading goalkicker Tom Lynch and brothers Brad and Matt Crouch, who they hope to build their midfield around for the next decade.

Exciting rookie-list forward Charlie Cameron will also be considered if he passes a fitness test on the groin injury which has sidelined him for two weeks while a fitness decision must also be made on playmaking defender Ricky Henderson, who failed to get through his second comeback match in the SANFL on Sunday because of a corked thigh.

Sanderson wants to find the missing parts to his stuttering engine, which has led to the club's frustrating inconsistency and threatens to derail its season.

Adelaide hasn't won consecutive games since round six, with Sanderson noting "we are a good side when we get an even contribution from the 22 players.''

"But there's unfortunately too many guys who when we win they play well and when we lose we don't see enough of them,'' he said after Saturday's nine-point loss to Essendon.

Sanderson views Lynch, the Crouch brothers and Henderson in his best 22 but the club is concerned about bringing back too many players for such a big game who haven't had a lot of AFL football under their belts.

Lynch hasn't played in the AFL since breaking his jaw against Melbourne in round seven, Brad Crouch hasn't played since round two because of a broken leg, Matt Crouch has played just one game in the big league in five weeks and Henderson hasn't played at all this season after breaking his leg in the pre-season.

"That's the juggling act we are faced with,'' Adelaide football operations manager Phil Harper said, adding he expects wingman David Mackay (mild concussion) to be available to take on the Power given the club's eight-day break between games.

"We've got some good selection options available to us this week but you do have to be mindful of the fact that some of these players haven't played too much AFL football recently. That is something we'll have to work through.''

Brad Crouch — last year's AFL Rising Star runner-up — missed the Crows' thrilling four-point SANFL win against North Adelaide on Sunday through suspension but has trained hard to force his way back into the AFL line-up after two games rediscovering his fitness and touch in the local league.

Lynch had 31 disposals and eight marks in his comeback match against the Roosters while Matt Crouch was dominant with 35 possessions.

You're reading an article about
Crows’ selection balancing act
This article
Crows’ selection balancing act
can be opened in url
http://aflnewstop.blogspot.com/2014/06/crowsa-selection-balancing-act.html
Crows’ selection balancing act