STAR Adelaide defender Ben Rutten says the Crows are developing into a team with the X-factor to match the four big Victorian sides of Collingwood, Geelong, Hawthorn and Carlton.
The likes of Jared Petrenko, Taylor Walker, Kurt Tippett, Patrick Dangerfield and Rory Sloane have all begun 2012 in outstanding fashion and Rutten said with more experience, Adelaide would be an incredibly dangerous side.
"Hawthorn, Geelong and Collingwood are all really good teams and all have those match-winning players," Rutten said.
"They've all got a really even spread of players, but they've also got those players who can win games.
"We're not as experienced as those other teams … we just need time together and a few more games and a bit more experience into a lot of guys.
"Hopefully in a few years time people will be saying the same sorts of things that we're saying about Geelong, Hawthorn and Collingwood at the moment."
Rutten said Saturday's tight win over the Western Bulldogs was vital, claiming such victories can prove the difference between a finals berth and an early end to the year.
"They're the sorts of games that if you look back at the end of the year, they could have gone either way and if you win them a lot of teams find themselves in the eight," he said.
"I think we'll probably find ourselves in quite a few close games this year, so it will be important to win them when we get the opportunity."
Earlier in the week veteran Michael Doughty said the Crows side of last year didn't handle momentum shifts well and probably would have lost to the Dogs when challenged.
Rutten agrees, with the former All Australian defender putting the mental strength down to a demanding summer that prepared the Crows for the stresses of a premiership season.
"The physically and mentally tough stuff we did over the pre-season … and a slightly different game-plan, will help us deal with those momentum swings and help us get the momentum back," he said.
"They're the sorts of games that we got steamrolled a bit on occasions last year and just weren't able to stem the flow of momentum.
"It's just about the ability to stem it as quick as you can and try and get a bit of ascendancy back."
Harry Thring covers Adelaide news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: AFL_Harry.
Ben Rutten is a $280,500 defender in Toyota AFL Dream Team. Register your team here
