ADELAIDE’S remarkable record against the Swans was the reason Crows fans were left thinking 'what if?' when the team lost its home qualifying final to St Kilda in 2005. The loss switched Adelaide to the opposite side of the draw where they faced West Coast at Subiaco in the preliminary final, rather than the Swans at AAMI.

But that final series is ancient history now as the Crows continue their climb up the AFL ladder, with more September action in mind. Despite recent results against Sydney going in their favour the Crows will be far from complacent going into Saturday’s game.

The club’s injury list reached a ridiculous 18 during the week, prompting the elevation of impressive rookie Andrew McIntyre, who has been named as an emergency and could make his debut on Saturday night. If Ben Rutten, Nathan van Berlo and Jason Porplyzia all fail to prove their fitness tomorrow morning, only two players on the senior list will sit out the game against Sydney.

Adelaide’s recent form: beat Port Adelaide by 24, beat Western Bulldogs by 38, lost to Essendon by 31, lost to West Coast (preliminary final) by 10 and beat Fremantle (2nd qualifying final) by 30.

Recent form against Sydney:
Round 14, 2006, Adelaide 15.11 (101) d Sydney 8.14 (62), SCG
Round 18, 2005, Adelaide 8.6 (54) d Sydney 6.11 (47), AAMI
Round 4, 2005, Adelaide 18.12 (120) d Sydney 11.13 (79), SCG
Round 15, 2004, Sydney 8.10 (58) d Adelaide 6.9 (45), SCG
Round 18, 2003, Adelaide 14.13 (97) d Sydney 14.9 (93), AAMI

Strengths: Adelaide’s obvious strength is its ability to overcome Sydney’s choke-hold style of play. You just have to look at the results to see that the Crows can combat the Swans’ tight and tough game plan better than any team in the competition. Sydney prides itself on maintaining possession of the ball while restricting its opponent to the lowest number of touches possible, with strong defensive pressure and countless ball-ups. When the two sides met last season, Adelaide had 46 more disposals than Sydney and was able to bust the game open with six-goal bursts in the second and final terms.

Potential weaknesses: The tallest Crow at West Lakes faces another big challenge this week against triple All-Australian Peter Everitt and the in-form Darren Jolly. Jonathon Griffin found it tough going last week against Port Adelaide duo Brendon Lade and Dean Brogan, recording just three hit outs. His mentor Ben Hudson is starting to look more and more like the player he was prior to a knee re-construction, but Hudson will need more support from the young ruckman against Sydney. The Swans create more ball-ups than any team in the AFL and ‘Griff’ will have to be on his game to give the Adelaide onballers a chance against Sydney’s clearance specialists.

They’re sweating on: Ben Rutten’s fitness. The former All-Australian full-back was at his tight-marking best last week, denying Port Adelaide’s Warren Tredrea any chance to make an impact on the game. Rutten copped a knock to the calf for his efforts but the Crows will be desperately hoping the big man can recover in time to stand Sydney match-winner Barry Hall.Hall was best on ground last week in the Swans’ win over Brisbane, booting four goals and hauling in 12 marks.‘Truck’ kept Hall goalless in the round 14 clash last season and the Crows will be looking for him to repeat the performance on Saturday night.

Dangermen: Nathan Bassett: His poise and leadership is the cornerstone of Adelaide’s defence. The All-Australian back pocket has had a stellar start to the season, touching up two of the league’s most dangerous forwards in Bulldog Brad Johnson and the Power’s Brett Ebert. Bassett looms as the front-runner to stand dangerous Swan Michael O’Loughlin. O’Loughlin booted three goals against the Brisbane Lions and was among Sydney’s best in last season’s round 14 loss to the Crows. Bassett will also be the primary candidate to stand Hall if Rutten is ruled out.

Nathan Bock: Following last week’s game Crows’ leading goalkicker Scott Welsh described Nathan Bock as a ‘revelation’ in the Adelaide forward line. Bock’s 12 touches, seven marks and one goal in Showdown XXII didn’t reflect the work ethic of the hard-running former defender. In tandem with Ian Perrie, Bock continually presented across half-forward and often sacrificed his lead to create space for Welsh and other Crows forwards. Bock has booted eight goals for the season and will be a key this week against a Sydney defence that will usher back Jared Crouch for the game.

Scott Thompson: Thompson has been in fantastic form in the opening three rounds of the season, averaging 24 possessions a game and leading the Crows tackle count with 16. At 24, Thompson has taken it upon himself to lead by example in the emerging group of young midfielders. With superstars Simon Goodwin and Andrew McLeod likely to attract the most attention from the Swans stoppers, Thompson’s hard work at the bottom of the pack could turn the game Adelaide’s way if he is allowed to run free.

Did you know? Adelaide has the best record in the AFL against Sydney. The Crows have won an impressive 17 out of the 26 games played between the two sides.