Adelaide forward Taylor Walker says the opening round loss to GWS is a game that “went begging” for the Crows but is confident of a turnaround

Speaking on Triple M Breakfast with Roo, Ditts & Loz on Tuesday, Walker said the Crows’ team defence was lacking in the second half of the match against the Giants.

The veteran forward said inaccurate kicking also proved costly and that would be a focus ahead of Adelaide’s first home game - a clash against Richmond this Saturday.

“We need to get our hands on the footy, kick straighter and defence is number one,” Walker said.

“It was disappointing (and) one that went begging for us.

“We started the game really well but then we were very poor in defence on the weekend.

“I think we kicked 4.9 in the first quarter, you turn that around - 9.4 and it’s a totally different game.”

Walker said the 35-degree heat was tough to play under but conceded the hosts handled it better.

“They watered the ground before the ground as well so the humidity was (high)… It was very, very hot,” Walker said.

“They just got first hands on the footy, to be honest, and we were chasing.

“In those conditions when you’re chasing a fair bit, it’s hard to go the other way.

“They were just better than us.”

The Crows will look to atone for the loss in their upcoming Round Two clash against the Tigers at Adelaide Oval on Saturday.

They enjoyed a strong victory over Richmond in Round Five at home last season and Walker said that gave players confidence of being able to get the jump on the Tigers again.

“We’ve improved a lot over the summer and played some really good footy over the pre-season games,” Walker said.

“They (Richmond) played some good footy on Thursday night, so we are going to have to bring our A game, up our defence and get our midfield going.”

Adelaide plays Richmond at Adelaide Oval on Saturday, with the first bounce at 4.05pm.

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