Veteran Adelaide forward Taylor Walker says he is feeling fresh and ready to go for his sixth finals series, after reports late last week suggested he had picked up a glute injury.
The 36-year-old did not participate in the match simulation part of last Thursday’s main training session, as news cameras captured him speaking to Club doctors.
But speaking to Triple M Breakfast Adelaide on Tuesday morning in the lead-up to the Elimination Final against the Western Bulldogs, Walker dismissed the notion he was hampered by injury.
“I’m 100 per cent fine to play, what a storm in a tea cup, a slow news day I reckon,” Walker said.
“I didn’t miss training, I just missed the match sim at the end because I had a bit of a sore glute, it’s good now though.”
Saturday night marks the beginning of Adelaide’s quest for finals success, something Walker said the group had been preparing itself for since its disappointing end to last season.
He went in-depth on the mindset of the group and the confident state of mind they were in.
“I was at the footy Club yesterday and the boys are champing at the bit to get into it, we’re very connected and looking forward to a month of footy to play,” Walker said.
“Last year was disappointing and as a group and football Club we learnt a lot about ourselves, and now we’re in a good position to launch into a finals series and give it our best shot.
“We’ve started playing some good footy, we’ve got some guys in great form, so now we need to go out there, action that and just enjoy it for what it’s worth, because finals series don’t come around that often and we’re not guaranteed to play finals every year.”
The Crows’ first September opponent will be a Western Bulldogs team fresh off a thrilling Wildcard Final victory against Collingwood last week.
Walker said the group watched the match closely, and gave a brief assessment of where the Dogs’ strengths would lie.
“We’re not too sure whether (Rory) Lobb will play back or not, (James) O’Donnell and Buku (Khamis) are the other two key defenders and then Bailey Dale is a massive part of their defence, I think he’s probably the best kick in the AFL,” Walker said.
“So we’ll pay some close attention to him for sure, he’s a real barometer for them and we’ll need to keep him in check.”
“Our midfield is going to be super important, they are stacked with talent in there with (Marcus) Bontempelli, (Ed) Richards, (Ryley) Sanders and (Joel) Freijah, so it’s going to be on in there,” Walker said.
“If we’re able to win our fair share of the ball and get it into our forward and put them under the pump it will go a long way as we know our team defence will stand up.”
Adelaide faces the Western Bulldogs in an Elimination Final at Adelaide Oval on Saturday at 7.05pm.
For more information on the Club’s finals campaign, head to the finals hub here.
