Adelaide forward Eloise Jones says a Showdown marks the perfect occasion to kick off the Crows’ 2023 AFLW campaign.
With interest in women’s sport at an all-time high following the success of the Matildas’ Womens World Cup campaign, a big crowd is expected at Norwood Oval this Saturday afternoon to see the cross-town rivals do battle for the second time.
Speaking to the media on Monday, Jones said she was excited to play on such a big stage and take on the challenge a much-improved Port side would present.
“It’s really exciting to kick off the season with a Showdown in front of all of our family and friends on home soil,” Jones said.
“I think it is going to be a massive thing for SA sport as well, we’ve seen the success of the Matildas and hopefully we can follow a bit of that and produce some great female sport in our state.
“We’ve got a lot of respect for Port and think they will be quite competitive this year so we are expecting quite a physical challenge from them, which we are all excited for.”
The Crows will be without vice captain and key defensive stalwart Sarah Allan, after scans revealed she would miss at least eight weeks with a hamstring injury.
Jones said that while the injury to Allan was a major blow, it also gives a number of Adelaide’s youngsters a chance to step up and fill the void.
“It’s definitely pretty upsetting for Sezzy (Sarah Allan), she’s a key player for us and has been for a long time,” Jones said.
“But on the flipside it opens up an opportunity for someone else to be able to slot in and fill that role.
“The depth in our squad is probably the most exciting thing heading into this season, we have a lot of young girls who can slot in and play across a lot of different lines, so I can’t wait to see who will step up for us in defence.”
After completing two seasons in one year in 2022, the off-season gave the players an opportunity to step back and refresh.
Jones said the squad was reaping the rewards of the longer lay-off and was raring to get into a new campaign.
“Obviously we had the two seasons in one last year so it has been a really big off-season, to be getting back into it now is exciting,” Jones said.
“It was a little bit strange having that overload of footy in the one year and then nothing for a while after that, but it gave us time to reset and spend quality time with friends and family.
“We’re all feeling very fresh and raring to go now, which is a good spot to be leading into a season.”
But while the landscape of the AFLW continues to change, Jones said the squad was confident it could maintain its status as one of the competition’s top contenders.
“Obviously we go into every season wanting to stay up near the top, and I think top three is an ideal goal for us to try and reach,” Jones said.
“Everyone is changing, opposition teams are getting better which will make it a challenge, but we’d love to stay consistent and keep challenging.
“The depth in our squad is really exciting and hopefully that translates to a good brand of footy.”
Adelaide takes on Port Adelaide this Saturday at Norwood Oval, with the first bounce at 2.35pm. There is still time to join the Crows family, AFLW memberships are available here.
