How Crows can trouble Port as high-pressure Showdown looms

ADELAIDE'S midfield could hold the key to a Showdown upset on Saturday night after the team's emergence as a top four scoring threat from stoppages in the past seven weeks. 

The Crows have clicked for their best patch of the season under Matthew Nicks and rank No.3 in the League for points scored from clearance since round 16, with a 4-3 record in that time.

It's a significant improvement since sitting 14th across the first 15 rounds when the team was criticised for lacking spark in the engine room, with the turnaround resulting in upset wins against the Western Bulldogs and Greater Western Sydney. 

The Crows' midfield has regained Matt Crouch in recent weeks, with the All-Australian racking up seven clearances against the Western Bulldogs, while big contributions have also been made from a variety of players including Jake Soligo, Zac Taylor, Sam Berry, and Izak Rankine. 

They will encounter a Port Adelaide team, however, that is building its top-two charge on team defence, resulting in a 6-1 run of its own since round 16. 

For all the scrutiny on the Power backline through the middle stages of the season, the group has emerged as the No.1 defence for defending inside 50s and limiting scores in that period. 

Defenders Brandon Zerk-Thatcher and Miles Bergman were in a combined eight defensive one-on-ones against Melbourne but lost just one, while Aliir Aliir was at his intercepting best against the Demons. 

The midfield's ability to win clearances by an average of 10 a game in the past four weeks, however, has also been vital to winning the territory battle and protecting the defence in a 4-0 run. 

The Crows have won the past three Showdowns and Saturday night's clash is expected to be typically fierce as the team hopes to build momentum into 2025 with another upset win. 

Port Adelaide has played down the significance of the rivalry match, declaring it another chance to best position itself for the rest of the year. 

But statistics prove the cross-town clashes go beyond an ordinary match-up in the pressure stakes and Saturday night should be no different. 

The AFL average match pressure rating for the past four seasons is 184, but Showdowns across that period average 191. The last clash in round eight this season had a pressure rating of 205. 

Of the 153 different match-ups possible in the AFL, Champion Data stats show the Showdowns rank No.6 for pressure.