Adelaide coach Don Pyke isn’t buying it.
His AFL club’s next opponent GWS are banged up, a host of injuries weakening their side for Saturday night’s encounter in Canberra.
The Giants have made four forced changes, losing injured quartet Toby Greene, Brett Deledio, Dawson Simpson and Sam Taylor.
But after looking at GWS’ inclusions – Dylan Shiel, Sam Reid, Tim Taranto and Ryan Griffen – Pyke rejects any suggestion his Crows have been gifted a good time to play the depleted Giants.
“Not with GWS and the talent they have got,” Pyke told reporters at Adelaide Airport on Friday.
“They lose some players but they bring in Taranto, Shiel, Griffen and Reid. “We understand the enormity of the task we have got going up to Canberra to play GWS who are well entrenched in the top eight.”
The Giants hold third spot while Pyke’s Crows are clinging to a thread of making the finals – they’re 12th but even if they win all three remaining matches they could still fall short of the playoffs.
“We’re not in a spot where we can afford to go backwards at any point, we have got to keep winning games to give ourselves a chance of playing in September,” Pyke said.
“Our form line is good. We come in confident, we come in knowing that our best is good enough against anyone – but we have got to produce that tomorrow night.”
Pyke lost his key defender Daniel Talia (calf) – his preferred match-up for GWS gun forward Jeremy Cameron – while utility Riley Knight has been sidelined by a knee injury.
Backman Kyle Cheney returns from a one-game suspension and veteran onballer Richard Douglas is back in the side after missing the past four months because of an ankle injury.
The changes continue an unsettled trend for Adelaide, which has suffered frequent injuries to key players throughout their season.
“Every coach after about five rounds was saying this is a super-even year,” Pyke said.
“We have seen in this competition on any given day anyone is capable of beating anyone else.
“The top 12 teams, including ourselves, are super-even and that is why there’s not a massive gap between first and 12th.
“Everyone would have story about opportunities they might have lost – players, games … the sum of all those parts equals where you get stand right now.”
