Will they improve? Will they regress? The big questions facing the Crows in 2025

SEN Breakfast hosts Kane Cornes and Sam Edmund have run their eyes over the Adelaide Crows and how they’re shaping up for the 2025 campaign.

With the trade and free agency period now complete, Cornes and Edmund discussed how the club may improve in 2025, how they may regress if things go wrong and the big questions facing the club next season.

The Crows finished 15th in 2024 with eight wins, 14 losses and one draw to their name.

How can they improve?

“For starters, it can't get any worse. They were probably up there with the most disappointing team in terms of expectation versus performance,” Cornes said on SEN Breakfast.

“They started really poorly and got off on the wrong foot after extending the coach before they needed to.

“They did lose a number of games by 11 points or less, they had six of those.

“They had Izak Rankine just when he was coming to the peak of his powers do the hamstring, he was looking to be one of the more explosive and dangerous players in the game, but they didn't get the best out of him in the back half of the year.

“They're going to start the season better. They’re going to get an easy draw. They're going to be a little bit more off-Broadway than they were. They were the prime-time darlings as we spoke about yesterday.

“They had no real game changers in the trade period, but they added to their depth, and they’ll play roles.

“I love their forward line. I think it is really one of the more dangerous forward lines in the game.

“I just think they're in a good spot. I wouldn't be surprised if they play on Preliminary Final weekend. That's how that's how much improvement I think they've got in them.”

How might they regress?

“For me, they get worse if this wait for Riley Thilthorpe, Darcy Fogarty, Josh Rachele and to a lesser extent Daniel Curtin (to become stars) continues,” Edmund said.

“If these guys don’t go to the next level … I look at them and think the reliance on Jordan Dawson, Rory Laird, Taylor Walker … we’ve spoken about Izak Rankine not being healthy.

“If those guys go down and they're exposed (they could go worse) and Matthew Nicks just can't afford another shocker.”

The other 2025 burning questions

“Do they have the intel from the from the coaches’ box? You have to question that,” Cornes said.

“Let's just look at Matthew Nicks’ record. They've been very patient with him. They've been very faithful.

“I think a more ruthless club would say, ‘Okay, he’s just not the guy, let’s move on and be a bit more aggressive’, but they haven’t done that.

“There are questions over their key backs. Look at Hawthorn’s backline now, what’s Adelaide’s backline?

“I love Max Michallaney, but where are the genuine key backs? Mark Keane was a big signing. With Ned Murray and Jordan Butts are they fully going to rely on those two?

“Then are they too one-paced through the midfield?”