Thursday 11 July, 11.52am
The warm winter sun beams directly onto a compact tractor slowly traversing the Eastern wing of Gold Coast’s Metricon Stadium.
The Horticulture team are busy making running repairs to the pristine surface after Adelaide completed their longest main training session of the year almost 30 minutes ago.
While the 28 Crows who travelled to Queensland prepare in the change rooms for an afternoon gym session at Bond University, one player remains on ground pushing himself to the point of exhaustion.
Injured forward Tom Lynch strides between the arcs at close to full speed, glances at his watch before turning around and returning to his starting point.
Sprint. Repeat.
Sprint. Repeat.
An injured Tom Lynch putting in the hard yards on the Gold Coast
Despite being ruled out of the Round 17 game against the Suns due to a niggling calf strain, Lynch still flew into Coolangatta Airport with his teammates and completed the majority of the main session before embarking on extras.
The sight of the 28-year-old putting in the hard yards on the track post-training is testament to his professionalism and leadership.
They say actions speak louder than words, and Lynch’s leadership qualities were consistently on display throughout the morning at Carrara.
At one stage during a full-ground drill, Lynch pulled aside co-captain Rory Sloane.
The pair engaged in a lively discussion, with an animated Lynch gesturing and pointing at certain elements of the drill.
Sloane responded with his own opinions and then nods, appearing more than happy to take the feedback on board.
Weeks ago, Sloane described Lynch as ‘such as an important player for us’ - but it is evident the link man’s impact extends well beyond the 120 minutes of game time each week.
Lynch the mentor
Promising forward Lachlan Murphy has been somewhat of a surprise packet in 2019, playing every game in just his second year at AFL level.
The 20-year-old was forced to take an unconventional path to the elite level, selected by the Crows as a rookie after being overlooked in the 2016 and 2017 drafts.
These setbacks instilled a strong desire in Murphy to continually learn and grow, and Lynch has played an integral part in his development as a footballer.
RELATED: Ben Davis following in Tom Lynch’s footsteps
When Adelaide’s players first emerged onto Metricon Stadium earlier this morning, Murphy walked out side-by-side with Lynch.
The veteran had his arm around the tenacious small forward, providing valuable snippets of advice around his leading patterns and how to create separation from his opponent.
“We’d love Lynchy out there, but he’s just as valuable when he’s off,” Murphy told AFC Media on the Gold Coast.
“He’s a leader and really cares for everyone who goes through that forward role.
“When he speaks, everyone listens.
“What he says is quite valuable. It’s great to have him up here, even though he’s doing his own stuff with his calf injury.
“His leadership is immense, and it helps us as a footy club.”
Lachlan Murphy and Tom Lynch celebrate a goal against Sydney in Round Two
Lynch returned to Metricon Stadium with his teammates on Saturday night, taking a seat inside Adelaide’s coaches’ box as the Crows demolished the Suns by 95 points.
Six days later, on a Friday night in Adelaide, he will pull on the guernsey for the first time in six weeks and look to take his impact on-field when Adelaide takes on Essendon in a blockbuster clash at home.
