ADELAIDE'S dream team attack - the Kurt Tippett-Taylor Walker tandem - is gone.
Walker's season-ending knee injury - seven months after Tippett defected to Sydney - has Adelaide facing a major depth test of its stockpiled talent at West Lakes.
The Crows can:
OPT for Shaun McKernan and Tom Lynch to work with equally inexperienced key forward Josh Jenkins.
HAND more time to lead ruckman Sam Jacobs as a key forward and reconsider the ruck tandem with either McKernan or Richmond recruit Angus Graham.
RESTRUCTURE around Jenkins with a "mosquito" fleet formed by Ian Callinan, Jason Porplyzia, Jared Petrenko and Richard Douglas. This would replicate the Carlton model that blitzed Adelaide on Saturday when Walker collapsed on his right knee.
Adelaide football operations chief Phil Harper and experienced defender Ben Rutten yesterday dismissed the doomsday predictions that have overcome the Crows since Walker's season was wiped out at the MCG.
"It's a big blow - he is one of our best players," Harper said of losing Walker for at least 12 months. "But what it does is present an opportunity for someone else to step up and I'm sure those guys who have been waiting in the wings are keen to get in, have a go and show they are pretty good players as well."
The main contenders for a refit of the Adelaide attack with go-to options are McKernan, Lynch and Lewis Johnston. They also are inexperienced with 23, 14 and three games respectively.
Jenkins has played just 16.
"We do have guys," Rutten said. "Shaun McKernan kicked five (with SANFL club Glenelg against Sturt on Saturday). Lewis Johnston is in some reasonable form.
"It is not going to be one guy who is going to replace (Walker). It's also about the way we are moving the ball in the forward line. We need more contributors scoring goals. That is the way we are going to have to approach it.
"However long 'Tex' is going to be out it is going to be disappointing for him and we are going to have to cover it.
"But you saw from the weekend with Carlton the way they can score heavily without having a dominant key forward."
Rutten, who will play his 200th AFL game on Saturday when Adelaide faces premiership favourite Hawthorn at AAMI Stadium, concedes the loss of Walker is a heavy hit on the Crows' finals aspirations. But from this setback he expects Adelaide to prove it is not reliant on Walker.
"He is an important player for our structure," Rutten said of Walker. "His ability, his leadership stuff over the past couple of years has been really impressive and he has just grown as a player and a person to be a dominant figure up there in the forward line.
"He is going to be a big loss. But we have to find ways to replace him.
"There are guys playing well in the SANFL. There is Josh Jenkins as well as Sam Jacobs, who is going to have to play a bit more up there.
"We have to find a way.
"You never want to be too reliant on one individual player. (The loss of Walker) will give an opportunity for others to play well up there. That is all guys need at times."
Harper noted the Crows had many options to debate on refitting their attack.
"There will be a lot of (planning) in the next two days," he said. "And we still think we're a good team and can make the finals."
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