Adelaide’s 2025 season came to an end on Friday night, as it fell to Hawthorn by 34 points in the first semi-final. 

The Hawks came out firing by kicking the first three goals in under three minutes, and didn’t look back, extending their lead at every change to record a 14.17 (101) to 10.7 (67) victory at Adelaide Oval. 

Adelaide Senior Coach Matthew Nicks spoke to the media after the game, and delivered six key takeaways.

There is still lots of work to do

As Nicks’ team walked off Adelaide Oval a dejected unit after exiting from its first finals series in eight years, one thought rang true in his head. 

There was still plenty of work to do. 

The Crows were given a harsh lesson in finals football across the past two weeks, as the experience and class of Collingwood and Hawthorn got the better of them. 

Nicks said that while the disappointment was still raw, the learnings the group from the experience would be invaluable.

“Our biggest learning out of all this is there is still work to do, although we are proud of the season, we walk away tonight with a few what ifs,” Nicks said. 

“There are still things we need to be better at, and we will get that by what we experienced in these last two games, the 10 minutes we just spent in the room reflecting on tonight's effort and the organic growth of our team moving forward. 

“It’s a pretty hard one to swallow right now, but when you think about our Club and the season and the way we went about things this year, I’m so proud of our members and supporters and how they stuck with us until the very end. 

“Like us, they’ll be hurting at the moment, but the sun will come up tomorrow and we can start working on how we can be better for them.”

The feedback of finals footy

Finals footy brings out a different type of pressure, and the Crows were dealt some harsh feedback from their two major round matches

Only seven of the Crows’ current list had featured in an AFL Finals Series before the game against Collingwood a fortnight ago, and that showed, with many unable to find an extra gear.

But Nicks believed the experience would hold players in good stead.

"Finals footy gives you feedback, doesn't it? So we've got probably the best feedback we've had for a number of years. We've still got a fair bit of work to do,” Nicks said.

“The obvious one is the speed, the intensity and the increase in pressure that comes with finals footy and until you’ve actually been there and experienced it, it's hard to know what to expect. 

“We got two looks at it this year, some of our players had their first two looks, and if you look at the way we played we were nowhere near our best footy.

“But you’ve got to give credit where it’s due, the reason teams are in finals is because of the pressure they bring, they don’t allow you to do the things you did during the home and away season. 

“You find you come up against different challenges in the finals, and we were given some great feedback from the experience, we need to get better.” 

Nicks reveals post game message to playing group

Emotions ran high among the players as they gathered to debrief the disappointment of the semi-final showing and the season that was. 

But as Nicks fronted his players, one message he wanted to ensure got through was that they should be proud of what they accomplished in 2025, as they climbed from 15th to first on the home-and away-ladder. 

He said the group understood the reality of its finals shortcomings, and said players would be determined to go away and improve in the offseason. 

“I wanted to make sure our group knew that there were a lot of positives to come out of this season, but the reality of it is we weren’t quite up to it in the finals,” Nicks said. 

“Our players agreed, a few of them spoke about the work we need to do, we need to go back and continue to get better. 

“They’ll now take a break to physically and mentally get away from footy and freshen themselves up, but I’ve never seen a group work as hard as we do and they won’t leave anything to chance in the offseason. 

“Our guys will go away with a scar there that is a pretty big one, it will heal but it hurts at the moment.” 

Nicks explains Rachele sub decision

Livewire forward Josh Rachele made his return from a 10-week knee injury as the substitute for the Crows’ semi-final clash against the Hawks. 

Putting in a power of work to get himself fit to return after suffering a torn posterior capsule in his knee, the 22-year-old was given the green light, albeit in the reduced role of impact substitute. 

Nicks said the decision was made with the best interests of both the team and player in mind, as it would be incredibly difficult to pick up the speed of AFL footy after spending 10 weeks on the sidelines. 

“In hindsight it’s easy to say we should have done this or we should have done that,” Nicks said. 

“But 10 weeks out of the game, it’s a big ask to come straight back in and contribute, so we got Josh on at half time because we felt the game needed to change. 

“Having been out for so long though it was a big ask for him to come in and impact straight away, he did a great job just to get back and play this year after suffering that injury to be honest. 

“He was hungry to come back in and help, but I think even some of the best players in the game would struggle after such a long layoff, so I don’t think him starting as the sub was the difference tonight.” 

Impact of Rankine suspension on the group

Adelaide was without game-changer Izak Rankine for its finals campaign, after he was handed a four match suspension in the Crows’ Round 23 clash against Collingwood. 

Nicks was asked how Rankine’s absence had affected the team, and speaking purely from a football standpoint, he explained the challenges that arose with the star forward/midfielder on the sidelines. 

“What it (the suspension) did do was change the dynamic of our group,” Nicks said.

“Izak is one of the best players in the game, so when any team loses a player of that quality it becomes quite a challenge to replace that. 

“Some of our young guys stepped up, showed they can play at the level, but the trouble we had was filling that void that Izak’s had for us all year.

“That’s purely on-field, I don’t think it affected us away from footy, but if we could have Izak Rankine in for the past couple of games we would have taken that.” 

Judging the season as a whole

Although Adelaide’s campaign ultimately ended in disappointment, there were plenty of positives from its 2025 season. 

The Crows became the first team in AFL history to jump from 15th to first on the ladder in the space of one season, and secured the third minor premiership in the Club’s history. 

They also won a competition-high 18 home-and-away matches, and had a number of players grow into solid AFL-level contributors. 

While disappointment was the overwhelming emotion, Nicks said there was still lots to be proud of, and most importantly, build off of going into 2026 and beyond.

“Any team that is going to go from 15th to first, you’ve got some stuff right,” Nicks said. 

“We’re really confident in what we’re doing and what we’re building, and that is what we’re really proud of as a footy Club. 

“It’s not so much the last 12 months we’re proud, we’re proud of the whole journey to this point and what we’ve done to put ourselves in this position. 

“We believe we’re doing the right things and are on the right track, this one really hurts but maybe it’s what we need to get better.”