Adelaide midfielder Brad Crouch took another step to getting back to his powerful best with an impressive performance in an under-23s trial against Port Adelaide at Thebarton Oval on Saturday.
The 25-year-old, in his first game since missing all of last year with a long-term groin injury, played all four quarters, splitting his time between an inside midfield role and the wing.
Crouch covered the ground well and showed he's on track to recapture his eye-catching form of 2017, when he averaged 28 disposals per game.
"Fantastic for Brad to get continuity – he gets another full game against opposition and he'll progress to his next step, which is JLT one," Adelaide SANFL coach Heath Younie said.
"We didn't put a significant percentage on his game time, we just played him as normal, it was fantastic for him to get through the game."
Some sublime ruckwork this ... @reillyob ➡️ @brad_crouch#weflyasone pic.twitter.com/8ao4uRG6f2
— Adelaide Crows (@Adelaide_FC) February 23, 2019
Small forward Tyson Stengle was also a standout in his first appearance for his new club, kicking four goals after joining the Crows from Richmond during last year's NAB AFL Trade Period.
Mature-age recruit Shane McAdam, who arrived at the Crows from Sturt via Carlton as part of the Mitch McGovern deal, was dangerous in attack with three goals as both new players pushed their claims for senior selection.
Small forward Lachlan Murphy was among the Crows' best, playing through the midfield, Riley Knight did plenty of work on the ball and defender Tom Doedee took some nice intercept marks.
Tom Doedee will gobble these up all day long#weflyasone #AFCMediaLIVE pic.twitter.com/GfSHHfSBcA
— Adelaide Crows (@Adelaide_FC) February 23, 2019
However, it wasn't enough as the Power rallied from 34 points down to win 15.8 (98) to 13.9 (87).
The only injury concern for the Crows was to forward Ben Davis, who jarred his knee, but the club was confident it was only minor.