ADELAIDE is keeping the future of veteran midfielder Scott Thompson under wraps to keep its focus firmly on Friday night's crunch game with West Coast at Adelaide Oval.
With a top-two spot on the line, the Crows don't want any distractions from their immediate goal of beating the Eagles.
In the process, they are avoiding North Melbourne's approach of announcing the departure of club legend Brent Harvey among four axings on the eve of the finals.
"We've been in regular contact with Scott in regard to his position and those discussions are on-going," Crows coach Don Pyke told reporters on Thursday.
"I'm not going to go into the detail here about where Scott's at, but we'll address that at the appropriate time.
"It's always interesting when people talk about Thommo.
"There's Thommo the midfielder, then there's Thommo the 33-year-old midfielder, and people get edgy about the fact he's 33.
"As long as he's able to perform and play his role and he's been able to do that, then he continues to hold his spot in the team."
Pyke said the Crows were also continuing discussions with out of contract midfielder Jarryd Lyons and defender/winger Ricky Henderson.
"It's a part of normal list management," Pyke said.
"A lot of things we'll deal with at the end of the season when we've got a clear picture of the landscape where we're sitting and the changes we may wish to make and where players are at."
Lyons could attract the interest of Victorian clubs after establishing himself in the Crows' best 22 this season, while Henderson – who is an unrestricted free agent – has been on the fringe this year and could look to move for greater opportunities.
Thompson is averaging 24.2 possessions and seven tackles per game this season, and has been rested twice to manage his workload.
The Crows are playing with great confidence having won 12 of their past 13 games, but are coming off two successive six-day breaks and a brutal 15-point Showdown win against Port Adelaide.
They will be without suspended star Rory Sloane while rebounding defender Brodie Smith is highly unlikely to play as he recovers from a concussion.
Winger Paul Seedsman will miss a third straight game with a corked buttock, but Pyke expects him to be available for the first week of the finals.
The Eagles have their own issues having lost ruckman Nic Naitanui for the season with a torn ACL.
"They're going to have to adjust without Nic," Pyke said.
"As has been flagged, they've got a few options there.
"We had a look at who they used and how they structured the team around that."
Pyke said the Crows understood the importance of the game, but couldn't afford to look too far ahead.
"There's a prize on the line tomorrow night," Pyke said.
"If we get caught looking over the horizon it's really dangerous.
"We've got a process to follow and the way we play, we can compete with anyone in the competition."
