AFL – Round 24\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Crows v GIANTS\u00a0
Saturday, August 22 at 8:10pm AEST \/ 7:40PM ACST\u00a0
Adelaide Oval | Kaurna\u00a0<\/p>\n
What It Means for the GIANTS\u00a0<\/p>\n
Last Sunday\u2019s draw between the Bulldogs and Blues\u00a0eliminated\u00a0the GIANTS from finals contention, despite\u00a0a workmanlike\u00a054-point victory for Adam Kingsley\u2019s men over the Eagles. Now six premiership points outside of the top ten, the GIANTS will play for pride and pride only this Saturday night at Adelaide Oval.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
The GIANTS played some of their best football during a nine-goal run from late in the first term\u00a0to\u00a0early in the fourth last Sunday afternoon, holding the Eagles goalless across the second and third quarters.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It was a defensive performance later lauded by Head Coach Kingsley in his post-match press conference, with\u00a0the consistent\u00a0Connor Idun almost impassable and Sam Taylor at his stingy best.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Up forward, Callum Brown (four goals) and Aaron Cadman (three) led the way, while the freshly re-signed Max Gruzewski\u2019s three contested marks captured the eye. Harvey Thomas (20 disposals, two goals) continued his stellar form on a wing, while half-back pairing Lachie Ash (36 disposals) and Lachie Whitfield (33) accumulated plenty of the footy.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The AFL\u2019s top ten is set in stone ahead of round 24, with the Blues (46 points) securing 10th position ahead of the Saints (11th, 40 points) and GIANTS (12th, 40 points). The highest the GIANTS can finish on the ladder is 11th,\u00a0agonisingly\u00a0short of a fourth\u00a0finals\u00a0appearance from as many years with Kingsley at the helm.\u00a0<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been a frustrating season on a number of fronts for the GIANTS.\u00a0Stirring victories over finals fancies in Opening Round (a 27-point win over the Hawks), round 11 (a 78-point win over the Lions), round 17 (a 21-point win over the Dockers) and round 18 (a 13-point win over the Cats) were tempered by disappointing losses to the Eagles, Bombers, Saints (twice) and Suns (twice). The club\u2019s best football has certainly been displayed, but not often enough to secure an appearance in September.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Despite the disappointment, GIANTS fans can take heart in the promising signs shown by several up-and-coming GIANTS in 2026. Dynamic half-forward Phoenix Gothard was terrific in his 16 AFL games before a shoulder injury ended his season. GIANTS Academy graduates Riley Hamilton and Joey Delana have\u00a0impressed\u00a0in their recent stints at AFL level,\u00a0as has\u00a019-year-old midfielder Jack Ough. Joe Fonti, Harvey Thomas, Ryan Angwin, and Max Gruzewski have each become key contributors to the side.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Meanwhile\u00a0the likes of young stars Finn Callaghan and Aaron Cadman look set to lead\u00a0the club well into the future.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Looking to this weekend, round 24 against the Crows offers an opportunity to enter the off-season at a gallop, as the club eyes a thunderous return to finals football in 2027.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s\u00a0the added impetus of Jake Stringer\u2019s 250th game for the playing group. Stringer has led the way in front of the sticks with 42 goals this year – his equal-second-highest season total across his 14 seasons in the AFL to date.\u00a0There\u2019s\u00a0no doubt the dynamic\u00a0forward\u2019s\u00a0teammates will be desperate to celebrate his milestone with a victory.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Opposition\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Crows have September to look forward to, but at what point\u00a0they\u2019ll\u00a0enter remains to be seen. A loss on Saturday, and the Crows\u00a0won\u2019t\u00a0shift from seventh position and will thus host a home wildcard final against the ninth-place side – a mathematical anomaly\u00a0notwithstanding. A win, and they could move into the top six – but\u00a0it\u2019ll\u00a0take one, two, or all three of the Hawks, Dees and Cats losing against lower-ranked opponents.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The\u00a0short version\u00a0– there\u2019s upward movement possible for the Crows, so expect them to be at their best on Saturday night, which they were close to in round 23 against the ladder-leading Dockers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As they have on a few occasions in 2026, the Dockers left it to the final term to break clear at Optus Stadium, turning a seven-point three-quarter-time advantage into a 24-point victory, 16.16 (112) to the Crows\u2019 13.10 (88). To that point, the Crows were well and truly up for the contest, led by Izak Rankine and Jordan Dawson through the midfield.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Taylor Walker and Alex Neal-Bullen are expected to return to the\u00a0Crows\u2019\u00a0side for the contest, while Wayne Milera and Hugh Bond will each face a fitness test as they hope to return from\u00a0respective\u00a0injuries.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The Crows have a strong eight-win, four-loss record at the Adelaide Oval this season and, with a\u00a0top-six\u00a0position and a week off within sight, will be keen to round out their home-and-away season with another victory.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Recent History\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
While the GIANTS have the edge over the Crows through their last ten meetings – six wins, four losses –\u00a0they\u2019ll\u00a0reverse a recent trend on Saturday night if they claim victory.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The GIANTS have lost their last two games against the Crows, and in last year\u2019s contest, the GIANTS\u2019 final score of 4.10 (34) was their lowest of the 2025 AFL season – indeed, their lowest score in Kingsley\u2019s tenure as coach.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Jordan Dawson (27 disposals, nine inside 50s) and Reilly O\u2019Brien (17 disposals, 34 hit outs) received Brownlow votes for their performances, while Lachie Whitfield (39 disposals) was the GIANTS\u2019 best.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The GIANTS have visited South Australia twice already this season, returning on both occasions with victories – defeating the Tigers by 56 points\u00a0in Gather Round, and in round 21 defeating Port Adelaide by 12 points.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Key Match Up: The Rankine File\u00a0<\/p>\n
What to do with Izak Rankine?\u00a0<\/p>\n
It\u2019s\u00a0a question\u00a0that\u2019s\u00a0surely on the\u00a0mind\u00a0of Adam Kingsley and his coaching staff this week. Rankine\u2019s last fortnight has been nothing short of outstanding – 36 disposals, 11 clearances and one goal against the Tigers in round 22 followed by 39 disposals, 10 clearances and 1.3 last weekend in a loss to the Dockers.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Rankine\u2019s pasting of the Tigers was ranked by Champion Data as the best individual performance by an AFL player since Patrick Dangerfield accumulated 48 disposals and kicked two goals against the Kangaroos in 2016. Rankine\u2019s 36 disposals was a personal best – that record lasted approximately one week.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In such\u00a0form,\u00a0there\u2019s\u00a0the potential the GIANTS may opt to\u00a0attempt\u00a0to tag Rankine. Ryan Angwin has been tapped of late as the GIANTS\u2019 stopper, and with typical tagger Toby Bedford currently out of the team due to back irritation, the versatile wingman might just celebrate his 50th game with the challenge of curbing the Crows\u2019 star. If Bedford returns from injury, it could be he who picks up the job.\u00a0<\/p>\n
GIANTS Player to Watch: Callum Brown\u00a0<\/p>\n
Since returning to the senior side following an early-season omission, Brown has found some of the strongest\u00a0form\u00a0of his AFL career to date, kicking a goal in each of his last eight games and capably\u00a0assisting\u00a0in the ruck when\u00a0required. His season-high four-goal haul on Sunday against the Eagles takes him to 21 goals this season, within reach of his career-high season tally of 25.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Working in combination with key forward pairing Aaron Cadman and Max Gruzewski, Brown\u2019s ability both in the air and on the ground has stood out in recent weeks, capped off by last weekend\u2019s performance. Look for him to hit the scoreboard once again on Saturday night.\u00a0<\/p>\n
In The Mix:\u00a0<\/p>\n
Xavier O\u2019Halloran is a test to return from a hamstring injury suffered in\u00a0round\u00a022\u2019s\u00a0loss to the Suns, while Toby Bedford is in line to play should he recover from back irritation.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The GIANTS\u2019 VFL side was eliminated from finals contention by the Devils in the last home-and-away match of the season last Sunday. Needing a win to qualify for finals, the GIANTS were defeated by 31\u00a0points, and\u00a0finish\u00a0the season in 12th position. Of the seven AFL-listed players in the side,\u00a0Jack Ough, Harry Oliver and Jake Riccardi stood out.<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n Team Selection:\u00a0<\/p>\n The GIANTS will name their final side of the 2026 AFL season on Thursday at 6:20pm at\u00a0gwsgiants.com.au<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Rehab Report:\u00a0<\/p>\n