In-form midfielder Richard Douglas says the Crows must turn up the pressure on the opposition to revive their 2013 season.

Defensive pressure was identified as an area for improvement when the Adelaide players and coaches sat down to review the first half of the season during the bye week. The Club is ranked bottom-five in the AFL for tackles and has conceded 100 or more points in three of its last four games –  something Adelaide only did six times in 25 games last year.

Douglas said defence would be the key to the Crows’ fortunes in the second half of the season.

“We’re playing some good footy offensively in patches, but we need to improve the defensive side of our game,” Douglas said on Monday.

“If you look at the games on the weekend, teams in the top four are the best at pressuring the opposition when they have the ball. Hopefully, this week you’ll see a lot more pressure on the ball carrier and stronger tackles.”

Defensive pressure will be particularly important against a much-improved Gold Coast at Metricon Stadium on Saturday afternoon. The Suns are a quick and dangerous stoppage side. They rank fifth in the AFL in clearances and third in contested possession – another area Adelaide has earmarked for improvement in the remaining 10 rounds of the home and away season.

“The Suns are exciting. They’ve got a lot of young kids and they’re fast. They move the ball really well, so if you give them a chance they can run you off your feet. We need to go up there and start really well, which we have against them in the past,” Douglas said.

“If you can stop Gary Ablett, it’ll go a long way towards winning as well. He’ll be hard to stop, but if we’ve got the footy, he doesn’t.  If our midfield can get on top, it’s going to make it harder for him to get a lot of the ball.

“We’ve lost our title as the best contested ball team in the comp. We’re no longer the No.1 stoppage team either. It was nice to be labelled that last year. It didn’t come easy; a lot of hard work went into it and we want to try to get back to that level.”

Douglas described the mid-season review as “constructive” and “positive”, saying the Club was refusing to give up on its season.

“We’ve still got a chance to play finals, so why would you start worrying about next year now?” he said.

“We’ve got to win at least seven of the next 10. We believe that’s a chance, but we need to start playing a lot better and it starts this week. We’re all on the same page, players and coaches, working together to play some good footy and get back to where we believe we can be. We had a chance to get away, refresh and get a few injuries right over the bye. The boys are fresh now.

“Hopefully, this week you’ll see a really good step forward for us.”