Senior Coach Bec Goddard puts her side’s successful start in the AFL Women’s competition down to the character and culture of the team.
The Crows secured their third straight win on Sunday to reclaim top spot on the AFLW ladder, level on points with the also unbeaten Brisbane Lions.
Goddard, who praised the group for remaining level-headed, said it was tough to pinpoint just one factor behind the Club’s impressive start to the season.
“The Adelaide water? Do you think that’s it?” she said with a laugh.
“We drafted with a lot of work into who the person was and what they brought to the group, because we wanted to set it up culturally the right way.
“Team spirit is important to me. It’s important to the team and the way that they identify themselves, and what they wanted to be remembered [for] in their first season of footy.”
After recording comfortable wins in the opening two rounds, the Crows had to come from behind to secure a gutsy win over Carlton at Thebarton Oval.
Goddard said the three-point victory showed the versatility of her team.
“We’ve now had three games that have been different in their own right,” Goddard said.
“Carlton definitely held us up last week, there’s no doubt about that, but we found a way to get through it. We were able to execute what we wanted.”
The Crows will be aiming to keep their winning streak intact against Fremantle in Western Australia on Sunday.
The Dockers, who beat the Crows in a trial match earlier this year, secured their first AFLW points in a draw with Greater Western Sydney last week.
Goddard said Fremantle was a better team than the ladder suggested.
“(They’re a) really great opponent. They’ve got superstars across the field, a bit like Carlton had,” Goddard said.
“We got beaten the last time we played them (in Darwin) and we want to put forward a better effort this time around.”
Marquee forward Kellie Gibson is making good progress from an ankle injury sustained in the opening minute of Sunday’s win over the Blues.
Goddard said Gibson was a “real chance” of playing in front of her home crowd.
“The scans showed that there’s no major structural damage,” Goddard said.
“She’s got a little bit of pain in there, but we expect that she’ll be able to do a bit at training on Thursday night and be available to be selected this weekend.”
The top two teams on the ladder at the end of the seven-week season will face off in the first-ever AFLW Grand Final.
Goddard was unfazed by the talk of the Crows potentially featuring in, and even hosting the decider at Adelaide Oval.
“Never before have I been in a competition where you win three games and people are talking about grand finals. It’s kind of crazy in a way,” Goddard said.
“We believe in what our group is capable of and we keep approaching it with a bit of a cliché – we’ll just take it week by week.
“You could honestly put us on the nature strip out the front of AAMI (Stadium) and the girls would still be over the moon. They just want to play footy at the highest level and keep having these opportunities.”
