Former Adelaide premiership defender and ex-AFLW assistant coach Peter Caven has only been away from football for six months but can’t keep himself away from his beloved Crows.
While he may not be on the field or in the coaches’ box this season, Caven is still a familiar face around the Club.
Since hanging up the boots in 2000, the two-time Premiership player has worked in sales for a construction company and entertains hundreds of Crows fans each game in Adelaide’s Premiership Suite.
Speaking to AFC Media, Caven said he has used the opportunity to keep a close eye on the progress of the Crows this season.
“I’ve hosted the Premiership Suite at the Club for the last 15 years so I’m lucky enough to be watching the boys every home game with another 100-keen supporters,” Caven said.
“We have lost a couple of tight ones this year but I’m seeing a lot of positive signs and they are playing well together.
“At the moment there’s a lot of hope and encouraging signs so we are getting where we want to be.”
The father-of-three became an assistant coach with Adelaide’s AFLW side in 2018 - a role he held until the end of Season Seven.
Caven said he had relished the opportunity to return to the club’s football program and pass on his knowledge to the new generation.
“I have three daughters and I’ve always believed in women’s sport,” Caven said.
“It is a great environment, where they want to be as good as they can as quickly as they can.
“The men’s game has been around for hundreds of years and to see the girls in an elite program, you can see how quickly they have advanced.”
Between work and his family, Caven said he didn’t have a lot of spare time but looked forward to watching the upcoming AFLW season with his daughters.
“My family goes to the games together and my eldest daughter especially enjoys watching,” Caven said.
“’I’m really looking forward to seeing how they go and it’s an exciting time.
“I think they have enough talent to push deep into the season and they are still a contender.”
Caven spent the early part of his playing career at Fitzroy and Sydney before he was traded to Adelaide in 1996.
When he arrived at West Lakes, Caven said he knew it was his last chance to make it as an AFL footballer.
“I thought my career was over and I’d played maybe 50 games by then,” Caven said.
“It was so refreshing to come back to a football-mad state, and I loved getting stuck in and getting my hands dirty.
“I knew it was my last chance so I did everything I could to make it count.”
The former key defender was an integral part of Adelaide’s back-to-back flags in 1997 and 1998 and looked back at his two premierships fondly.
“You dream of playing AFL and you dream of winning premiership cups so to do it twice was amazing,” Caven said.
“Being in front when the siren goes is just a relief and an incredible feeling.
“We just wanted to achieve something for each other.
“You don’t realise how hard they are to win and that’s what I wanted to play footy for.”
