With the bulk of Adelaide’s first-choice engine room watching on from the Thebarton Oval grandstands, a number of emerging Crows were given exposure through the midfield in Saturday’s Under 23 trial game against Port Adelaide.

Brad Crouch led the way in his return to competitive football, playing all four quarters, while first-round draft selections Chayce Jones and Ned McHenry both showed glimpses of their potential when they pushed up onto a wing.

“Brad was outstanding – he certainly leads by example when he crosses the white line with bringing the pressure we want to apply to the opposition as well as his organisation with the younger mids,” Crows development coach Paul Thomas said.

“Both Chayce and Ned played at AFL level in periods, which was great to see from them, and that was the feedback they got from the senior midfielders too, who were really pleased to see them play to the level that is required.

“Now it’s just about these young guys building their capacity to do it for longer.”

TRIAL MATCH: Defenders reviewed

Thomas highlighted the work rate of young ruckman Reilly O’Brien who carried the bulk of the load, assisted by rookie Paul Hunter.

“I thought our rucks - Reilly O'Brien and Paul Hunter - were impressive, which meant we got our hands on a decent amount of first possessions at centre bounce but just didn’t capitalize on it,” he said.

“Reilly jumped really well, but also took some great marks around the ground and kicked a goal as well.

“These are things he’s aiming to add to his game – on top of his ruck craft – to increase his ability to be picked as a ruck/forward and to give him that point of difference he’s searching for.”

With the 6-6-6 structure at centre bounces enforced for the first time, Thomas said it added an entirely new dimension to the game.

“From a holistic point of view, if you lose it, it’s five-on-five in a big lot of space to defend so the premium now becomes centre bounce and clearance, not just to get field position but we saw on the weekend that it does give you a greater opportunity to score,” he said.

“A metre doesn’t sound like a lot but in the midfield, it can be the difference between losing a clearance or gaining one.

“We’re working on the connection between our rucks and our mids – the refinement now is to turn our first possessions into clearances versus a scrimmage ball.

“Going forward, it’s about doing the fundamentals better for longer, so our ball take, our ball security, our positioning at times.”