AAMI Community Series vs Brisbane: Four key takeaways

Adelaide concluded its 2025 pre-season campaign with a three-point win over Brisbane at Brighton Homes Arena on Thursday night.

Four goals within the final ten minutes lifted the Crows to the 14.13 (97) to 13.16 (94) AAMI Community Series victory, with the match serving as a final tune-up before their Round One clash against St Kilda on March 16.

Adelaide Coaching Director Murray Davis spoke to the media post match and delivered four key takeaways.

Trio of recruits impress

Adelaide fans caught a glimpse of its trio of trade period additions on Thursday night, with each showing the value they can bring to the squad.

James Peatling attended the first centre bounce of the match, and was prolific through the midfield for the entire four quarters, recording 21 disposals and six clearances.

Utility Isaac Cumming showcased his class on the wing, finishing with 17 disposals, five marks and kicking his first goal for his new Club late in the final term.

Alex Neal-Bullen was a workhorse across half forward, consistently providing an option for his teammates, to finish with 20 disposals at 85 per cent efficiency and six marks.

The newest addition to the Crows’ leadership group was particularly impressive late in the game, where he recorded nine pivotal last quarter touches to help get his team over the line.

“That (the performance of the recruits) was really pleasing, these pre-season games are all about connection and building that chemistry, and it was great to see those boys fit in like they did,” Davis said.

“Those lads showed a lot of fight and to see each of them have a good game, it’s a nice win to take out of the match.”

Draper adds “different dynamic”

Adelaide’s top pick in the 2024 National Draft Sid Draper was injected into the match after half time, and proved instrumental in its final quarter comeback.

Showcasing his trademark speed and ability to break the lines, the 18-year-old gave Adelaide’s midfield an immediate spark, as he finished with 14 disposals and five clearances from just two quarters.

Davis said the first year Crow added a different dynamic when he entered the game and should take confidence out of his performance.

“Young Sid Draper came in at the end and was pretty important in getting the ball going our way from centre bounce as well… He just gave us a bit of a different dynamic in there,” Davis said.

“It (how he performed) should do a lot for his confidence, and we’ve been really happy with how he’s progressing, so we’ll just continue to help get him there the right way.

Crows midfield stand up to the challenge

Adelaide’s added midfield depth was on show at Brighton Homes Arena on Thursday night, with the new-look group more than holding its own against the reigning premiers.

The Crows won the clearance battle 41-40 and were impressive out of the middle, winning centre clearances 17-12.

Headlined by a complete performance by Skipper Jordan Dawson, the Crows had a host of contributors in its engine room, with the likes of Jake Soligo, Izak Rankine, Matt Crouch, Peatling and Draper all playing key roles.

“One thing that we’ve done is that we’ve been able to bolster our midfield group and have different guys playing through there, which we saw a bit of tonight,” Davis said.

“You look at Brisbane’s midfield group and they bat pretty deep through there, that’s what good teams do and we are working towards being a really good team.”

All eyes on Round One

Adelaide will take plenty of lessons from its pre-season clashes against Port Adelaide and Brisbane, as focus quickly shifts to its Round One clash against St Kilda on March 16.

The Crows were able to get valuable game time into the majority of its squad and test the work they had been doing over the pre-season against two teams that featured in last year’s finals series.

Davis said the group handled the pre-season campaign well, and was aware of where they needed to improve ahead of the Round One clash against St Kilda.

“It’s important for us to come here and play the best team in the competition and get some nourishment for all the work we have been putting in over the pre-season,” Davis said.

“We’re happy we were able to do that (grind out the victory), clearly there are a lot of things we are still working on that we’ll focus on heading into Round One.

“St Kilda Round One is our sole focus, there are some things we have been working on that we’ve been able to do, and we still know that we’ve got improvement left in us and that will be the talk around the group.

“The coaching group and the players are well aware that it is a pre-season game and our focus is purely on Round One.”

Adelaide begins its 2025 season with a Sunday afternoon clash against St Kilda at Adelaide Oval on March 16.

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SCOREBOARD

ADELAIDE 2.3 6.8 9.9 14.13 (97)