Round four: Adelaide v Greater Western Sydney
Saturday, April 21 at 4:10pm (SA time)
AAMI Stadium
Out of action
Dom Tyson (soreness) - TBC
Jeremy Cameron (corked thigh) - TBC
Jonathon Patton (knee) - 6-7 weeks
Josh Growden (fractured tibia and fibula) - TBC
Kurt Aylett (ACL) - indefinite
Stephen Clifton (fractured wrist) - 4 weeks
Recent form
Round three: GWS 10.9 (69) lost to West Coast 23.12 (150), Blacktown
Round two: GWS 8.6 (54) lost to 28.15 (183), Hobart
Round one: GWS 5.7 (37) lost to Sydney Swans 14.16 (100), ANZ Stadium
Recent form against Adelaide
N/A
INS: James McDonald, Shaun Edwards
OUTS: Toby Greene (soreness), Jeremy Cameron (soreness)
Team:
B: Jack Hombsch, Tim Mohr, Phil Davis
HB: Adam Kennedy, Chad Cornes, Luke Power
C: Rhys Palmer, Tomas Bugg, Tom Scully
HF: Adam Treloar, Curtly Hampton, Stephen Coniglio
F: Devon Smith, Israel Folau, Shaun Edwards
Foll: Dean Brogan, Callan Ward, Dylan Shiel
I/C: Jonathan Giles, Adam Tomlinson, James McDonald, Jacob Townsend
Emergencies: Josh Bruce, Anthony Miles, Nathan Wilson
Stats that matter
Saturday afternoon’s match at AAMI Stadium will pit Giants co-captain Phil Davis head to head with his former teammates for the first time. Drafted by the Crows with pick No.10 in the 2008 AFL Draft, Davis played 18 games for the Club before being lured to Greater Western Sydney on a lucrative deal towards the end of last season. Ex-Port Adelaide players Chad Cornes and Dean Brogan will also be looking forward to another match against long-time arch-rivals, Adelaide.
Sam Kerridge became the sixth current-listed Crow to make his debut against Hawthorn after receiving a call-up to replace Rick Henderson (hip soreness). Michael Doughty (2000), Chris Knights (2005), Andy Otten (2008), Rory Sloane (2009) and Brodie Smith (2011) also played their first AFL games against the Hawks.
Despite going down to West Coast by 81 points, the Giants achieved a couple of small milestones last weekend, winning their first quarter for the season in the final term and posting the highest-score - 10.9 (69) - in their short existence.
Ex-Bulldogs onballer Callan Ward is the Giants’ leading possession winner in 2012, averaging 26.3 possessions a game, while Jonathan Giles has kicked more goals (five) than any of his teammates.
The Crows are ranked second in the AFL in the contested possession differential, averaging 15 more contested possessions than their opponents in 2012. Adelaide won this statistic +21 against the Hawks but struggled to match Hawthorn’s run and spread, losing the uncontested possession -126.
The Crows laid only 51 tackles against the Hawks - their fewest in a game this season.
News Bites
Davis braced for boos - Herald Sun
"GIANTS co-captain Phil Davis thinks something will be wrong if he isn't booed when he returns to Adelaide for tomorrow's match against the Crows..."
Time out for Izzy - AFL.com.au
"THE GIANTS have struggled with a raft of injuries early in their AFL journey, but are steadily moving closer to their best team. Dean Brogan and young midfielder Adam Treloar made their debuts against West Coast on Sunday, while Setanta O'hAilpin did well in his first match in the reserves. Josh Bruce and Nathan Wilson also impressed for the seconds and could come into calculations this week, while No.1 draft pick Jon Patton is around a month away. Young key forward Jeremy Cameron picked up a corked calf against the Eagles and may miss Saturday's away clash with Adelaide..."
Giants must earn sell-out crowds: Sheedy - AFL.com.au
“THE GIANTS put plenty of work into promoting the game throughout the week and were optimistic of selling out the 10,000-capacity Blacktown International Sportspark. The ground sold out for NAB Cup matches this pre-season, but only 6,875 people turned up on a perfect day for football in Sydney's west…”
Giants humbled, not disgraced: Sheedy - AFL.com.au
“GREATER Western Sydney found itself entering the record books after a savage opening quarter against West Coast on Sunday, but the first-year club earned plenty of plaudits for how it responded…”
