Follow AFLW finals week 2 semi-final scores, results, odds, squads and start time from Ikon Park in Carlton
Coach Matthew Clarke is confident Adelaide are peaking at the right time but is wary of Melbourne suffering injuries in the AFLW semi-final.
The Crows travel to Melbourne for Saturday afternoon’s sudden-death clash where they suffered a 44-point defeat against St Kilda in the knockout final.
Crows’ Caitlin Gould and Niamh Kelly (right) celebrate their win in the elimination final.Credit: AFL Photos via Getty Images
“This was probably our strongest performance of the season,” Clarke told reporters at Adelaide airport on Friday.
“We felt like we made patches throughout the year, played some pretty good football but maybe were inconsistent.
“It’s really gratifying to bring our best game into the back end and of course into the finals.
“You hope to play your best football at the back end and given that you are starting to work together more consistently you probably should.”
Clarke named an unchanged squad for the Ikon Park match but the Demons, who suffered a 13-point qualifying loss to Brisbane, made two changes.
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Star goalkeeper Eden Zanker (concussion) will miss and Jemma Rigoni is dropped, while Sinead Goldrick and Laela Ebert are called up.
“Obviously for them, losing Zanker probably hurt them in the game last week,” said Clarke.
“But they had a whole week to prepare and structure, and even without that, they were facing multiple weather threats before the ball.
“It’s an important start for them but it’s part of football, you have to be able to overcome some challenges.
“We’re watching how they go about it. They’ve had a great year, and even last week, a lot of the metrics say they should have won this game.”
“They are really good in the competition… moving the ball into the front half really effectively.
“And like most teams, they have really strong support defensively.”
A defeat in Adelaide will end the tenure of dual premiership coach Clarke, who will resign at the end of the season.
“This question came up a lot, but the answer was pretty similar,” he said.
“AFLW is a really short season so your focus on the next game is really intense.
“And then you factor in the fact that you’re going to the finals, all that other stuff is really secondary. It’s not even a factor.”
“Let’s really just go see if we can win a game?”
AAP
