On who will play on Matthew Pavlich …
“There will be different players, who play on Matthew Pavlich at different times. We also rate Chris Mayne, Kepler Bradley and Aaron Sandilands, who can go forward. Then there’s Hayden Ballantyne and Michael Walters, so they’ve got some weapons offensively. If we put all our attention into Pavlich one of those other guys will hurt us.”
On what the team needs to improve on from the loss to Sydney last week …
“It’s more so the execution. Our effort last week was fantastic … I thought they tried their hearts out for us, but the execution wasn’t there, the poise wasn’t there and the calmness when the heat was coming wasn’t there.
"That’s what’s important for us this week - to make some minor adjustments to how we play and try to break down Fremantle’s defence. We acknowledge that they’re a great defensive side. We’re the only side that has beaten them in the last 10 weeks. We’ll certainly have to be at our attacking best to beat their defence, but we’ve got to ensure our balance of attack is where it should be as well.”
On the team’s ball movement last weekend …
“Last week, when under pressure we ‘quick-kicked’ it forward and Sydney was able to read it. Their pressure around the ball was good. We just didn’t handle it. We’ll make some adjustments to that this week. If we are under pressure and have to kick it, we’ll make sure we’ve got even numbers ahead of the contest. If we try to be safe and have a low-risk, low-reward game I think that plays into Fremantle’s hands. We’ve got to make sure we still take the game on.”
On Josh Jenkins’ potential …
“Josh Jenkins is still very raw and learning the game, but his raw stuff is exceptional. He’s had some great games for us this year. He’s super exciting. He can play forward, back and has played in the ruck this season. We haven’t used him down back this year, but he’s certainly an option to be a tall defender.”
On how the team has responded …
“It hasn’t been sour grapes this week. We’ve certainly got on with business. Only two sides have beaten us here at AAMI Stadium this year - we’ve got to make sure it’s not three. We certainly haven’t spoken about losing this week. It’s been about what we can improve on and the lessons learned from last week.
"There are six teams left. We’ve got to win three games now to win a premiership, but nothing is more important than the first quarter against Fremantle. If I told the players last year … we would be in a Semi-Final at home, they would’ve grabbed it and I would’ve grabbed it. It’s a great opportunity for us to taken on Freo, who we’ve beaten twice this year.
"It’ll be a red-hot game … the rewards are great - that you play in a preliminary final. If we win, we’ll talk about a prelim and if we lose I guess we’ll talk about the disappointment of losing two finals, but there’s not much point talking about that now. We’ve got no fear … we’ll do everything we can to make amends for last week.”
On the key to beating Fremantle …
“We have to do the basics well and not get spooked by their great defensive system. We’ve got to respect what they do well, but also try to do what we do well.”
On who the Crows expect Ryan Crowley to tag …
“Scott Thompson is a great player and if you can take him out of the game I think most clubs would and try to do it again. We’ve got a few plans in place. Ryan Crowley is a great tagger. We’ve just got to make sure Scotty gets some help, or Danger gets some help if Crowley goes to him. Hopefully, we can try to combat what they do.”
On the speculation Greater Western Sydney ruckman Jon Giles wants to return to SA …
“I haven’t seen the article and didn’t know anything about that. My focus is just on this week and tomorrow. Giles is a good player. I certainly rate him. He’s had a great season for GWS, but that might be a question for later in the year.”
On the importance of a big home crowd …
“Our fans are really important. We’d love for people to get tickets in the next 24 hours and have a huge Adelaide crowd here making plenty of noise. They were great last week even though we were always coming from behind and couldn’t get in front. The crowd were right behind us and have been great all season. We’d love to get every ticket sold.”
