ADELAIDE is on "the right path" to figuring out how to counter opposition teams dropping players behind the ball, coach Don Pyke says.
The Crows get another chance to test their progress when they host an out-of-sorts Western Bulldogs at Adelaide Oval on Friday night.
After six straight wins to start the season, the Crows have won four of their next eight to sit second on the ladder behind Greater Western Sydney.
Two of those losses have come against North Melbourne (17th) and Hawthorn (13th), but the Crows were able to grind out a 12-point victory over Carlton at the MCG last weekend.
"We just have to adapt and we've done that well in certain games. Last week at times we struggled to get the ball back off Carlton, but the numbers back made us less efficient in terms of our scoring, and that's the nature of how some opposition are playing us now," Pyke told reporters on Thursday.
"That takes some learning and some education for us as coaches and the players experiencing it.
"If a side does A, B or C, what do we need to do?
"We've got that right a couple of times, and a couple of times we haven't.
"We think we're on the right path."
The Crows are set to regain speedster Charlie Cameron after he passed a fitness test on his injured wrist.
"Charlie Cameron has come up really well, so he's available and ready to go," Pyke said.
Utility Andy Otten is likely to return to the side to replace key defender Kyle Hartigan, who will miss four to six weeks with a hamstring injury.
Half-back flanker Tom Doedee's name has also been thrown up, especially if the game is played in heavy rain as expected and the Crows prefer a smaller backline.
Doedee was the 17th overall selection in the 2015 NAB AFL Draft, but has yet to make his senior debut.
"He's played some good footy at SANFL level and he's continuing to build, so he's getting really close," Pyke said.
Link-up forward Tom Lynch will resume running either this weekend or early next week as he recovers from viral meningitis.
"He did some walking the other day and he'll run on the weekend depending on how he's feeling," Pyke said.
"We're just monitoring him because it's one of those things where you can't push him too hard.
"Tom being Tom, he's keen to get going as well."
The Bulldogs (7-7) have lost three of their past four, but Pyke isn't taking them lightly.
"The Bulldogs are high-quality opposition and they really pride themselves on their pressure on the ball," he said.
"We know it's going to be on to start with, wet or dry.
"If it's wet, it'll be more of a field-position game."
