Crows & Power 13/14 Off Season

Basically a rookie I reckon

Yes, all that he has achieved is that the Lions recruiting staff thought he was worth pick 5 a couple of years ago.

The skill of the Lions recruiting staff is hardly worth banking on.

Word is that Adelaide's first home game at the Adelaide Oval will be against Sydney - possibly the first clash against them with Tippett in the side provided he's not injured.

What a cracking game that could prove to be!

Draw out this morning.

Pretty happy with it from an Adelaide perspective. If we're good enough we'll do well, but if we serve up the same rubbish as this year then we'll quite rightly get found out.

The first 3 weeks pose the toughest assignment - away to the Cattery, Port hosted Showdown, Sydney at home. I'll be happy to snaffle just one of them to be honest.

Did I read that the Crows and Port are having a Nab cup match at Richmond Oval

Have to be competitive in that first game down there. A flogging would be disastrous and we may not recover.
Two matches against North Melbourne again, they could be vital games. Could possibly be battling for an 8th spot with them.
Home matches against regular top 8 sides in Sydney, Hawthorn and Collingwood again. All 3 beat us at home last season. Have to be better than that or won't play finals.
Western Bulldogs away is 50-50 at best, our record against them anywhere is poo. Must win at least one showdown.
Carlton and Essendon away. Need to win 1 of them.
Other games are obvious. Must beat GWS twice, St.Kilda twice, Brisbane away, Richmond at home, West Coast at home, Melbourne at home.

Yep, good call on all of those points sapaul.

Reading in the paper this morning the Bernie is having a bit of a sook about the Club not giving him a long term commitment:

http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/afl/melbourne-recruit-bernie-vince-says-he-didnt-want-to-leave-adelaide/story-fnia3xzy-1226752308426

I've always liked Bernie, but IMO he's only got himself to blame. So much potential but really hasn't realised it - there comes a point where the Club has to make the call and in this case I think Adelaide and Sanderson got it right.

Not sure he's having a sook Ginge, the bloke is in your best 22 and had a year to run on his contract at 28 years old and was given no assurances of another deal.

Like he said, at no point did Sando or Noble say "We want to keep you".

Sure, this is the football landscape we now live in,but I think Adelaide made a poor call on this one.

He's in our best 22 for sure - but he should be in our best 5 consistently.

Don't get me wrong, I always wanted him to be in our best 4 or 5 players - as has most of the Adelaide fan base - but he never provided consistent 'elite' performances.

Then perhaps he isn't an "elite" player (I dont see him as elite) so expectations outweighed ability and he suffered because of it.

On the flip side, Adelaide had to get into the draft pecking order somehow and with ZERO (LOL) interest in McKernan, little in Henderson or McKay there were very few tradeable comodities at West Lakes. Perhaps being a fan favourite adds emotion to a decision based on pretty much everything BUT emotion.

Not that I'm too fussed either way, but I think Adelaide are yet to really feel the loss of Rendell and to a lesser extent Schwerdt.

Whoever the new fitness guru is down there has to pull his socks up after Adelaide struggled to get going early and then struggled to run games out late in the year.

Thats where the focus on Adelaide will be over the summer and the pre-season, not on Bernie Vince or who ever you get with pick 23.

No doubting any of that. Add to the picture Bernie's looming free trade status at the end of next season.

Really this whole mess goes back to the Tippett saga. You can now add the loss of a favourite son to the list of casualties from that mess.

I try and stay positive as a supporter and I think Adelaide has plenty of upside and will challenge for a top 4 berth consistently over the next few years - but deep down there's a little voice that whispers "the Tippett saga will cost you another genuine tilt at the flag for a decade or more...."

If you've managed to keep that down to a whisper, you've done well. 

Although Jenkins appears capable of playing a back-up role, he isn't a real ruckman capable of matching it with the best big men. He will be a very useful key forward and ruck back up though.

But what Adelaide did two years ago in recruiting the mirror magnet / list clogger Angus Graham was deny themselves a chance to secure a young ruckman to develop alongside Jacobs, as they obviously figured that man was Tippett. With McKernan offering little on field and even less at the trade table you now find yourselves with Jacobs leading the ruck, Jenkins as back up and Graham and McKernan running around in the SANFL.

The immediate impact of draft penalties might hurt now, but the loss of a ruckman and no young ruckman developing on the list will be the one to bite you in 2-3 years from now.

SEN in Melbourne running with news that Alan Richardson is leaving Port Adelaide to take the St.Kilda coaching job immediately.

Matt Crouch joins brother Brad at the Adelaide Football Club.

Pumped by that selection. Not often that brothers get to play together these days, hope they can get the best out of each other!

Great that they get to play together, should be good for both of them.

Should be some sort of father/son rule for brothers IMO

Nathan Van Berlo has done his achilies and will be out for at least 3 months.

Probably more of a blow to his career than to Adelaide itself. I think we have the cattle to cover him from an 'on field' perspective.

Will be interesting to see who steps up as captain in his absence, Dangerfield would be the hot favourite, but Sloane wouldn't be without a chance either.

I think Dangerfield - actually why doesn't he just take over from here on in?

Surely Dangerfield. When adelaide catch on how good it is when a captain leads by example with his on field actions, he will be a permanent appointment in 2015.

I hope they give it to Shaun McKernan.

Haha. Not likely Booney.

I'd reckon there are probably a few players pretty happy they now have an 'excuse' to vote for someone other than Van Berlo now for this year's captaincy.   

While I obviously wish him all the best, as a supporter I have to admit I'm not disappointed by the prospect of a change to the captaincy. Will be interesting to see how they do it, i.e. if his replacement is just a stand in until he gets back.

Are they likely to announce the leadership group soon Ginger?

I think I heard them say on the TV last night that it will be sometime in the next fortnight.

From memory it's been done by player vote in the last couple of years.

Dangerfield and Sloane will be co-captains for the time being.

Yep, Van Berlo has been appointed captain again, Dangerfield & Sloane interim co-captains until he returns.

Surprised to see that Walker has been elevated to the leadership group. Perhaps dealing with the knee injury has helped him develop and mature a bit.