Crow Patrick Dangerfield has warned the football world to be realistic in its expectations of Taylor Walker ahead of his likely AFL return against Collingwood.
Walker has impressed in two SANFL games in his comeback from a serious knee injury and is poised to take the next step in Adelaide’s blockbuster clash with the Pies next Thursday. It will be the two-time Crows leading goalkicker’s first AFL game since rupturing his ACL (Anterior Cruciate Ligament) and LCL (Lateral Ligament) against Carlton in Round Five last year.
Dangerfield said Walker’s return would be an enormous boost for the team, but that the Crows couldn’t afford to rely on the talented 24-year-old to lift them to victory.
“Tex brings that swagger. He just has that incredible confidence. We’re really excited to have him back, but we can’t afford to put all our hopes and dreams on Taylor because he’s coming off a 12-month injury layoff and a knee reconstruction from anyone takes time to get back (to peak form) from,” Dangerfield told FIVEaa.
“I think Tex makes people walk a bit taller when he’s around.”
The Crows are yet to reveal the make-up of their forward line with the inclusion of Walker.
Tall targets James Podsiadly and Josh Jenkins have both been important this season, and coach Brenton Sanderson said it was possible all three could play in the same attack. Adelaide will need to fill the void created by the loss of Tom Lynch, who will miss 4-6 weeks with a fractured jaw.
Dangerfield said the Crows forward line had the potential to be very exciting and potent.
“The forward line has looked good at different times,” he said.
“We’ve had our key forwards perform well one week when our small forwards haven’t, and our small forwards perform well when our big fellas haven’t. We just haven’t quite had it all on the one day. That’s not just the forwards fault. We’re a team. It’s the defenders and how the midfielders are delivering the ball inside our forward 50m.
“Taylor will make some difference. He’s an exciting player and one of the best in the competition. He improves any forward line, but the underlying thing is it’s not just our forward line that needs to improve.”
The Crows are also looking forward to the return of Rising Star runner-up Brad Crouch, who is a fortnight away from resuming after a fractured leg. Adelaide’s best-performed midfielder in the latter half of last year, Crouch will help boost the Club’s contested ball numbers and disposal efficiency. Dangerfield said it would be good to see the Crouch brothers play together.
“Brad and Matt Crouch are going to be two players who play for 10 years in our midfield. They’ll fight each other and more importantly they’ll fight the opposition,” he said.
“Those two I’ve been incredibly impressed with, particularly Matt … this is a kid who is 19 years of age playing good league football. His future is scary really.”
