Adelaide will be hoping to keep in touch with the top eight as it travels to Alberton Oval to take on Port Adelaide in Showdown V. 

The Crows head into the marquee rivalry clash with the goal of winning back the Variety Showdown Shield, after the men fell to the Power in the second Showdown of the AFL season. 

Senior Coach Ryan Davis spoke alongside Power mentor Glenn Strachan on Friday, and touched on the following.

Feelings heading into first Showdown

Saturday night’s match will mark Davis’ first Showdown as a Senior Coach, something he said he could not wait to experience. 

He spoke about the build-up throughout the week, and how important the match was for the football Club and its journey in 2026 and beyond. 

“I'm really, really excited. Obviously, it's a massive game for our season as well, for the rivalry and being the best team in South Australia,” Davis said. 

“Speaking to some of the older players and the past players coming to the football club and just saying what it means and and getting the group to sort of reiterate that to me today, it certainly has the feels and the emotions are very high. 

“I think from where we both are sitting on the ladder at the moment, and you throw in a showdown on top of that, it's just a hell of a lot of spice in this game for sure.” 

Motivation from losing last year’s Showdown

Adelaide will be drawing on the hurt of losing last year’s Showdown as it prepares to take the field on Saturday night. 

The Crows fell to Port Adelaide for the first time in the AFLW at Norwood Oval last season, something Davis said had stuck with the group ever since as it strives for redemption. 

“Yeah (the Showdown loss hurt the group) a huge amount, that's something that really really stung the group, and certainly looking to make amends this year. 

“So the way they've prepared all week, they've been locked into this game and getting this job done.” 

What Alice Tentye will bring

Adelaide will unveil another AFLW debutant this Saturday night, with speedy midfielder Alice Tentye getting her opportunity on the Showdown stage. 

Tentye was a standout throughout the 2026 SANFLW season for Woodville-West Torrens and was signed by the Crows as a replacement player during the pre-season. 

Davis said the 21-year-old had impressed during her short time at the Club, and was ready to take her game to the highest level. 

“She's been banging the door down in scrimmage, having 30-35 touches every week, but her work rate goes back to when she was playing at Mount Gambier,” Davis said. 

“She moved up, put all her eggs into the football basket, played some seriously good footy down at the Eagles, I think she played half a season and came third in the SANFLW Best and Fairest. 

“She's been an incredible asset to our footy club, just in terms of how she attacks the training, the preparation, the recovery, all those types of things. So, we're really excited to see how she goes.” 

Growth of the Club’s youth

The introduction of Tentye into the team this week will make it six AFLW debutants for Davis’ team across the first eight matches of the season. 

He said it was pleasing to see so many of his younger players put their hands up for senior opportunities. 

“I think it (playing these younger players) will certainly pay us back in the future,” Davis said. 

“We've got a really good blend of experienced players who've played a lot of finals, won a lot of premierships, and now we’ve been able to blood some new players in there too. 

“I think it is going to really help us over the coming years.”

Importance of a good start

Adelaide was stifled by a fast-starting Fremantle outfit last week, as it conceded the first five goals to ultimately fall by 25 points. 

Davis said the group learnt a lot from its shortcomings, and was keen to atone under the intense pressure of a Showdown. 

“We certainly looked at it (the start of the game), our ability to arrest momentum and be able to to get that game back on our terms, that was a crucial piece of education for us this week. 

“Some of them were the general skill areas that you can't really defend against, but also a little bit of our system. So just being able to make sure that we're locked in the right way at the start of the game. 

“It's probably just more of an application in and around our team defense and some of the stuff in the skill areas, we're asking our players to play aggressively and be brave and attack the corridor. So you've got to wear those results sometimes.” 

Adelaide takes on Port Adelaide at Alberton Oval this Saturday night, with the match to start at 6.45pm ACST. 

For fans who can’t attend the match, it will be broadcast live on Fox Footy, Kayo and 7Mate Adelaide.