ADELAIDE tough nut Matt Crouch has a fractured hand, but will take his place in the Crows' side to face Richmond at the MCG on Friday night.
"He's got a little bit of a knock in his hand, he's got a little crack in there, but it's going to be fine," Crows coach Don Pyke said on Thursday morning.
"It's only a minor, little fracture. It's not really affecting him.
"I spoke to him this morning and he's fine.
"He trained all week. He's going to be a little sore, but he's not concerned at all."
MATCH PREVIEW Tigers v Crows
Despite fracturing his hand in last Saturday's 10-point win against West Coast at Adelaide Oval, Crouch finished the game with 32 disposals, including 20 contested possessions.
Pyke confirmed link-up forward Tom Lynch would return to the team after passing concussion tests this week, but wouldn't reveal other possible changes to his side.
It's Lynch's first game since the round 11 loss to Greater Western Sydney when he suffered a side strain for the second time this season.
"He's a fantastic link player for us and he's done that job during my time at the footy club," Pyke said.
"That space that exists (on the MCG) allows him to roam and connect really well for us.
"It's great to have him back and he's an important player."
Pyke said last year's 48-point Grand Final loss to the Tigers hadn't been discussed this week.
"We don't really need to speak about it, we've gone through the review of the Grand Final (last year)," Pyke said.
"I haven't done the numbers about how many guys (in Friday night's team) didn't play in the Grand Final, but I'd suggest it'd be as many as six to eight, maybe more, so for a lot of guys, it's irrelevant.
"For the guys who played in it, that's something – having played in losing Grand Finals – that sits with you, but this is a different game.
"This is round 16 the following year and we're playing a side that's in good form.
"We need to play the way we're capable of playing, and not look backwards at what happened last September."
The Tigers have an enviable record at the MCG, winning their past 16 games at the venue, while the Crows have four wins, three losses and one draw at the ground since Pyke took over the side in 2016.
"We've actually played reasonably well there," Pyke said.
"There are some slight subtleties of playing at the 'G', but you have to adapt to every ground.
"Richmond are clearly the benchmark of the comp playing some really strong footy.
"We need to plan for how they play, and come with a simple view of how we beat them."
Star midfielder Rory Sloane will play his second game back after missing 10 weeks with a foot injury, but the restricted free agent's future at the Crows beyond this season remains unclear.
"There's still conversations happening pretty regularly, but when something is done we'll let you know," Pyke said.
