DESPITE the expected wet and slippery conditions at AAMI Stadium on Saturday, Adelaide defender Ben Rutten says sliding is the last thing the Crows want to do against Richmond.

After being outplayed by North Melbourne last Sunday, eventually going down by 32 points, Rutten said a win was needed against the Tigers to keep the side on the front foot.

Despite a superb season, last week's loss to the Kangaroos capped an ordinary month for Adelaide, in which it survived close encounters with both Fremantle and St Kilda.

"There wouldn't be too many players who were pleased with their performance [last week] … I know everyone's really keen to play in front of the home crowd and get back to the form that we've shown throughout the year," Rutten said.

"It can very quickly get one loss into two and three, so it's so important that we bounce back this week."

Rutten, a former All Australian full back, is expected to play a vital role in subduing Richmond's power forward Jack Riewoldt.

Riewoldt has booted 18 goals in his past four games, including hauls of eight and six against St Kilda and Hawthorn and is second in the race for this year's Coleman Medal.

But Rutten said he was looking forward to going head-to-head with the superstar, as is NAB AFL Rising Star nominee Daniel Talia.

"I'm sure I'll see a bit of him, I've played on him in the past and I know 'Tarls' (Daniel Talia) will be keen to have a go," he said.

"He's a great mark of the footy and loves to get a good run and jump at it and he's really hard to stop if he's allowed to do that.

"As much as it's my responsibility and 'Tarls'' responsibility when he's on him, we look at those things as a team approach as well."

Boasting an elite midfield including Trent Cotchin, Brett Deledio and Dustin Martin, Adelaide's ability or inability to lay and stick tackles will play a key role in dictating the quality of Richmond's ball movement on Saturday. 

The Crows could only manage 10 tackles in the second half against North Melbourne last weekend and Rutten conceded it was an area that needed work.

"We had some really poor numbers last week, it's a really key indicator for us and all teams … that's one of the areas we really need to improve on from last week," he said.

"If you're up in their face and giving them something to deal with, the tackles will come.

"We just need to get back to doing that."

Rutten said he was confident both Kurt Tippett and Sam Shaw would take their places in the side, having overcome concussion and a hyper-extended knee.

Harry Thring covers Adelaide news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Harry