Brad Crouch will need to build consistent form in the SANFL before earning an AFL recall, says Adelaide coach Don Pyke.
Midfielder Crouch managed two games in the senior side after returning from a hamstring injury, but was dropped after the Crows' loss to Geelong in Round Eight.
Pyke insisted the 22-year-old was on the right track for a senior recall but with the SANFL side having a bye last week, he would remain in the state league for the time being.
"I had a discussion with him around what that looks like, and we're really clear, both him and us, in terms of the rebuild for him to get back into playing the AFL footy we know he's capable of," he said.
"How long that takes, we don't know, but we're hopeful it's going to be hopeful sooner rather than later.
"He's now had a block of five weeks of training and playing, which is probably the longest period he's had for 18 months.
"That continuity's going to really help him and I'd expect he'll be pushing up really quickly."
The Crows will receive a huge defensive boost for its Sunday afternoon clash against St Kilda this weekend, with star defender Rory Laird declared fit and available for selection.
Laird started the year in career-best form, but has been sidelined since Round Six with a broken toe.
The team's defence has clearly felt the absence of the key ball mover in recent weeks and, while the Crows have scored more than any other side this year, they are ranked 10th defensively.
Laird averaged 26 possessions a game in his six matches this season as one of the competition's best running backmen.
"We were probably conservative with him last week, but given the amount of, a: footy he'd missed, and b: time he'd been off with that toe, we just felt it was important to get another week of training in," Pyke said.
The Saints visit Adelaide Oval on the back of two wins, albeit against cellar-dwellers Essendon and Fremantle.
Pyle said St Kilda was a team on the up.
"They probably had the one exception, which was the West Coast game recently at [Domain Stadium] … other than that, they nearly beat North Melbourne at Etihad a month ago and they've won their last two," he said.
"They're a good, strong team emerging."
