Adelaide Vice Captain Ben Keays has delivered a clear message to his teammates, following the Crows’ 19-point loss to Geelong in the opening game of Gather Round.
The Crows fell to the Cats at Adelaide Oval on Thursday night, despite holding an eight-point lead at the final change.
Speaking to the media on Friday at the Elder Park Footy Festival, Keays lamented the side’s inability to capitalise on its three-quarter-time advantage, leading to a 3-2 win/loss record.
And, despite making some costly errors in the final term, Keays backed his teammates to continue taking the game on and learning from the defeat.
“I thought we played some solid footy for three quarters, we were right in the game, (but) probably in the last quarter, it felt like we were well and truly beaten,” Keays said.
“What I’d say to our group is, we want to play a certain way, so we have to keep going for it, we can’t get scared of mistakes or go into a fear mode, we have to keep playing.
“Some of those you just have to live with, and credit the opposition for great pressure. I thought a couple of the errors were actually just from their (Geelong’s) great pressure and they brought a really strong forward-half game, so you have to credit them.
“We’ll keep encouraging each other, keep being optimistic, keep encouraging each other and keep playing the way we want to play.”
Keays recorded a solid individual performance against the Cats, finishing the match with 18 disposals, six marks, six score involvements and three goals.
The 28-year-old said the side would now regroup and turn the focus to its clash with GWS at Adelaide Oval on Easter Saturday (April 19).
“It is a strong competition and we know that every week we’ll face a really strong opposition,” Keays said.
“We are still really encouraged with the spot we are in, we’ve played some really fantastic teams across the first five rounds, and none better than last year’s Preliminary Finalists last night.
“We are in a good spot and I’m really confident in the group, we are still optimistic.”
