“They are a sleeping giant”: Russell bullish on Adelaide's 2025 potential

Dwayne Russell has predicted that the Adelaide Crows will be the big risers of the 2025 AFL season.

Adelaide has not played finals since 2017 which has been a club record drought, but Russell is confident that they will be able to break that this year.

“I think the Adelaide Crows are a sleeping giant,” Russell said on SEN’s Dwayne’s World.

To get there, Russell believes that forward Izak Rankine will be an integral part to their push to play in September.

“It’s going to be a chicken and egg thing, maybe they need Izak Rankine to be the best player in the comp or close to it for them to be a premiership contender,” he said.

“They are one of the few clubs outside of Melbourne that could have the best player in the competition and the most marketable player in the competition playing for them (in Rankine).”

Rankine was only able to play 15 games last season, but made important contributions averaging 1.9 goals (second highest for Adelaide last year) and 18 disposals per game (10th amongst all forwards in the AFL).

Adelaide has been active in pushing for a finals spot this year. In the trade space adding the GWS pair of James Peatling and Issac Cumming, and Melbourne’s Alex Neal-Bullen to their list.

Alongside their trade period recruitment, they drafted midfielder and SA-local Sid Draper with the number four draft pick.

If the Crows are to play finals, Russell thinks that it will come at the expense of the last three expansion sides into the AFL.

“I think it is more difficult for Gold Coast, more difficult for the Giants for example and I think it is more difficult for Fremantle," he said.

Adelaide will play their showdown rivals Port Adelaide in a pre-season match on February 21 at Mount Barker.