Adelaide Crows assistant coach James Rahilly has spoken on how thrilled the club has been with its depth options over recent weeks, while a possible return for star Izak Rankine could be on the cards this weekend.
The Crows debuted Luke Nankervis in Round 19, ex-Pie defender Mark Keane in Round 20 and more recently in Round 21 key defender James Borlase. All three had solid outings in their recent victory against the Suns, with Rahilly singing their praises.
"They were great weren't they," Rahilly told reporters on Monday.
"To come in, and I think 'Nicksy' (Matthew Nicks) spoke about our depth and Keaney (Mark Keane), Borlase and Nankervis have been playing some great footy in the SANFL. It shows we're not far off."
Whilst the Crows did manage a great win against the Suns, it'll take a whole lot more to take down the Lions up in Queensland. Brisbane are currently undefeated at the Gabba, while the Crows are aiming to welcome back star forward Izak Rankine.
"I think he's a chance. I worked with him on Friday, he did everything right," said Rahilly.
"He's got a pretty normal week this week so if he ticks his boxes and trains fully, he's a good chance to play.
"If Izak's ready to go and can play a full game of footy, he'll play."
Josh Rachele made his return after missing two games due to a suspension. The 20-year-old was noticeably quiet with only seven disposals and four marks despite playing out 78% of the game on Saturday.
"At times he was a little bit quiet but he still played his role," explained the assistant coach.
"We were quite outnumbered a bit ahead of the ball. He came on, took a good contested mark. He does use the footy and made some really good decisions late in the game.
"He's probably a little bit hard on himself with where he wants to be but he wants to be a great player and that's what I love about him and that's why I love working with him."
Rachele has played both as a midfielder and more notably as a forward. Rahilly made it known that the club is trialling the youngster around the ground with the intention of transitioning him into more of a midfield role.
"I think he's still finding his way in the game," Rahilly said.
"He has been a forward but we see he can be a very important midfielder for us. He's really learning that craft as well as obviously spending time in the forward line and kicking goals or setting up goals. I think his next step will be working really hard with that midfield group."
Darcy Fogarty is also seemingly finding his feet after another strong outing for the second consecutive week. He's currently the third-leading goalscorer for the Crows this season, booting 33 goals in 18 games.
"Fog's (Fogarty) is still working on being a consistent forward. Forward is the hardest area to be consistent, I will stick up for the forwards in that department. His last couple of weeks have been really strong. He's probably going at the ball a little bit better, doing his craft, doing his work before the ball comes in a lot better. He's a confidence player when he gets his hands on it early," said Rahilly.
Crows winger Chayce Jones was subbed out in the third quarter with an injury that could possibly see him out for the entire year. He hurt his left foot and will be missed by the side for a significant period.
"The year he's (Jones) had has been really strong. He's played on the wing. I reckon as far as consistency goes, he's been one of our most consistent players, especially in his role...he's had a great year up until now," Rahilly added.
One of the welcome returns to the side was Shane McAdam. He made his way back into the team in Round 18 and has played every game since.
"He plays with energy, he brings that defensive pressure, he obviously jumps at the ball, competes really well at the ball and brings it to ground if he doesn't mark it," Rahilly said.
"Just that freshness and energy of actually missing so much football because he obviously had that suspension and then had that quad injury. So he only really played two or three SANFL games, so he's pretty fresh, he can really help us towards the back end of the year."
The Crows will be travelling to Brisbane to face the Lions at the Gabba on Saturday at 4:35 PM AEST. Rahilly stated that the focus is on the Crows' "consistency through four quarters" which will most definitely be needed if they're to topple the Lions at their fortress.
