Adelaide has named its opening-round team to take on Essendon at AAMI Stadium on Friday night.
Young defender Luke Brown and forward Josh Jenkins have been given first opportunity to make vacant spots at either end of the ground their own. Matthew Jaensch, Andy Otten and Brodie Martin, who all had interrupted 2012 seasons, have also been selected.
Forward Ian Callinan will miss the Round One clash because of a minor knee injury, but Jason Porplyzia has recovered from a stomach ulcer and will play against the Bombers. Highly-rated midfielder Brad Crouch has been named as an emergency.
Coach Brenton Sanderson said it was a difficult decision to leave the 19-year-old out of the team.
“We debated whether to play Crouchy for a long time. He was right in the mix and really close, but we’ve gone with a slightly more experienced line-up. It’s a reflection of how strong our team is that we’ve left him out,” Sanderson told afc.com.au.
“While Crouchy will be disappointed, he is going to play a lot of games for us and understands he’s going to get his chance soon. He’s waited 12 months and unfortunately he’s going to have to wait another week, potentially.
“Sam Kerridge is another one. Sam isn’t even in the 25 this week, but has had a really good pre-season and those young guys will get their chance sooner rather than later.”
Defender Sam Shaw has also been left out of the team that beat Carlton in Adelaide’s last NAB Cup hit-out. Shaw, who missed part of the pre-season because of knee soreness, will play in a trial game for Glenelg.
“Sam needs at least another week of training and match play before he plays for us,” Sanderson said.
“Andy Otten has played nearly every game and Shaw less than one after being a sub. Sam will be back soon, as will Callinan.”
Less than 800 tickets remain for the blockbuster clash at AAMI Stadium. The match is expected to sell-out, so supporters are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance to avoid disappointment at the gate.
Sanderson said he was rapt to have footy back.
“We’re as ready as we can be,” he said.
“We’ve only made a couple of little adjustments to how we play, so our game style will be pretty similar to last year. It’ll be a red-hot game.”
The team is:
B: Luke Brown, Ben Rutten, Ricky Henderson
HB: Nathan van Berlo, Daniel Talia, Brent Reilly
C: Bernie Vince, Patrick Dangerfield, David Mackay
HF: Richard Douglas, Josh Jenkins, Jared Petrenko
F: Jason Porplyzia, Taylor Walker, Matthew Wright
RUCK: Sam Jacobs, Scott Thompson, Rory Sloane,
INTERCHANGE: Matthew Jaensch, Graham Johncock, Brodie Martin, Andy Otten
EMERGENCIES: Brad Couch, Shaun McKernan, Aidan Riley
