ADELAIDE has avoided any serious injuries in its first pre-season hit-out after losing four players to minor concerns during its loss to Richmond.
Ruckman Sam Jacobs (back), midfielder Cam Ellis-Yolmen (knee), and forwards Mitch McGovern (knee) and Jono Beech (calf) were all casualties in the Crows' 19-point defeat to the Tigers at Etihad Stadium on Friday night.
But coach Don Pyke said the club was only taking the conservative approach with the group, and expects all to be available for their next JLT Community Series clash against Geelong next Sunday.
"We would've liked to have played Sam a bit longer tonight. He tweaked his back a little bit which is a bit stiff, and at this time of the year we take a no-risk policy," Pyke said post-game.
"All those boys we expect will be fine for next week but it's just a matter of tonight not being the night where you push guys on to get them through."
WACTH: Don Pyke's full post-match media conference
The Crows were overrun by the Tigers after leading by five points at half-time, conceding 10 goals in the second half while only booting five themselves.
But Pyke was optimistic about the club's midfield depth with key trio Rory Sloane (fractured eye socket), Scott Thompson (hamstring) and Brad Crouch (hamstring) missing from the clash, and said the Crows can take heart from the respective returns of Andy Otten and Curtly Hampton against the Tigers.
Otten had not played for the Crows since the end of 2014 after suffering a run of serious knee injuries, while Hampton missed all of last year after crossing from Greater Western Sydney.
"Some of the guys were a bit nervy and edgy about the opportunity that presented, where as Andy was like 'I've been here before' so it was pleasing to see he's got return for effort he's put in over pre-season," Pyke said.
"We think Curtly can be that player who can play between half-back and half-forward. He's got a nice blend of power and speed."
Richmond coach Damien Hardwick also had some new faces in his squad, with key midfield pair Josh Caddy and Dion Prestia (both had 21 disposals) impressing and ruckman Toby Nankervis also performing well.
Prestia will be rested for next week's pre-season contest with Port Adelaide, with Hardwick saying the former Sun delivered in his first game for the club.
"He's just nice and neat. He complements our midfield really well and the great thing I love about his game is defensively he runs really hard as well, which is something we value highly," he said.
"He won't play next week so will come back in for the third game."
WATCH: Damien Hardwick's full post-match media conference
The Tigers will welcome back star defender Alex Rance (hamstring) for next Sunday's clash with the Power, with Hardwick also keen to praise his younger brigade of Tigers who showed great signs of development against the Crows.
Second-year half-forward Daniel Rioli was especially exciting early against Adelaide, and Hardwick said the cousin of Hawthorn champion Cyril had matured physically to be ready for a full season at the top level.
"He's started to develop a body. He's one of those players who, when you tackle, he can just seem to shrug out. He gets out of places that you're not quite sure how he gets out of, to be frank," he said.
"He's got some improvement left in him too which is exciting for our fans but when he gets the ball generally good things happen. We're starting to see something we knew [was there] when we recruited him, it's probably just taken a little bit of time with his body development."
