TAYLOR Walker might have overtaken him as crowd-favourite, but Adelaide's Jason Porplyzia is still one of the Crows' most important barometers.

Porplyzia's body has finally held together this season and he's become one of the most important cogs in the Adelaide machine.

When he fires, the Crows usually win - they haven't lost a game all year in which Porplyzia has booted at least three goals.

The 27-year-old was well down on his usual form last week against the Swans, kept to just 10 possessions and held goalless.

Like so many of his teammates, he couldn't make his mark in the qualifying final and the Swans progressed straight through to a home preliminary final.

But he was back to his best against Fremantle on Friday night, kicking three goals and collecting 23 disposals and a game-high 11 marks.

Coach Brenton Sanderson said Porplyzia's turnaround in form was crucial in the Crows' impressive 10-point win.

"He was really important for us," he said.

"He's another one you look at the stat sheet afterwards and you don't realise he's had so much of the ball ... it's been good that he's been able to get in a bit of form tonight.

"He's just clean, he's clever around contests, he's that dangerous match-up
for us and he's a real leader of that forward group too."

Porplyzia's teammates also saw the value of his performance.

Midfielder Matthew Wright was in awe of the 'Porpoise' and was frank in his description him.

"He's a freak," Wright said.

"He's probably got the best hands in the AFL when he's up and running and takes some clutch grabs and he's a finisher, he kicks goals when we need them."

Early in the game it looked as if Porplayzia would struggle to make an impact on the cut-throat contest as he fumbled and missed targets.

But he quickly lifted, nailing the Crows' crucial first goal and managing 14 first-half disposals.

Wright said that even while he wasn't one of the game's most prolific possession-getters, Porplyzia's football smarts and presence made a huge impact.

"We have a lot of boys who might not be getting a lot of the footy but they're playing an important role for the team," he said.

"We don't worry about them getting the footy too much, they're playing their role and when he does get the footy he uses it.

"He's a fantastic user of the footy and he showed that again tonight."

Harry Thring is a reporter for AFL Media. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Harry.