Inaugural Adelaide AFL coach Graham Cornes has donated his collection of Crows files to the Club’s archives.
It includes notes and reports for every player from 1991-94, pre-game dossiers on opposition players and teams, and detailed post-game observations.
Cornes, who guided the Crows through their first four seasons in the AFL, told The Crows Show he was determined to respect the Club’s past.
“I had them filed away and I never wanted to throw them away because to me, it was part of my history and it was a connection with the guys that were in those initial squads,” Cornes said.
“I didn’t realise until I could stop and look back, how significant it was. We were in the middle of a revolution and we were right at the coalface.
“Those guys who gave their time and their effort and their endeavour, with no real guarantee of contracts those early days. I don’t want those guys to be forgotten.
“It’s important now, 30 or so years after the start, but it's going to be even more important in 50 years’ time and then in 100 years’ time, somebody has documented it as it was.”
Cornes was a part-time coach, as was his only assistant, Michael Taylor, and most other football staff.
Crows-listed players were also part-time footballers, working or studying during the day before training.
The limited contact with his semi-professional squad as Adelaide entered the national competition forced Cornes to rely on written communication.
“The pre-match file would be everything they needed to prepare for a game of footy,” he said.
"Our opposition line-up, a little piece on every opposition player, the recent form of the opposition, the players who were most likely to be dangerous.
“Then our game plan, how we wanted to play against them, what the weather conditions would be like. And there's always a little philosophical piece on the back, that, as a coach, you thought you're charged with improving the minds of these guys and you're providing them inspiring little things. At times that would all be ten or 11 pages.”
On the Monday after games Cornes provided each player with an assessment of their performance, including statistics for their opponent.
“I don’t think there was highly critical stuff there, but more like encouragement and pointing out things that they could have done things better,” he said.
The notes were hand-written in the first season and later he dictated to football administrator Maria Ballestrin to type and copy.
The Crows first played finals in their third season, reaching a preliminary final. But after slipping to 11th spot in 1994, Cornes' tenure as coach ended.
“I can’t say it was satisfying, because I got sacked,” the Australian Football Hall of Famer said.
"It was such a rollercoaster ride of emotions but it’s a great memory to have.
"I'm so proud to have had a role.”
