ADELAIDE is considering athletic recruit Brad Moran as the man to mind Hawthorn livewire Lance Franklin in the NAB Cup semi-final at AAMI Stadium on Saturday night.

Picked up from the Kangaroos in the off-season, English-born Moran has impressed as a tall defender and also occasional ruckman during the Crows' wins over Collingwood and Fremantle, but his biggest role may be in providing the answer to the Franklin question.

Adelaide coach Neil Craig and his men were confounded by "Buddy" in last season's elimination final, when their supposed best match-up Kris Massie was powerless to stop the big left-footer from kicking seven goals, the last of which, seven seconds from the siren, gave Hawthorn victory by three points.

The club's subsequent recruit of Moran, and injection of draftees Kurt Tippett and James Sellar into their pre-season cup squad, suggests Franklin's display left an indelible mark on the Crows.

Craig said Moran was a genuine chance for the role.

"He's a possibility, he's got some attributes that we'd like to have a look at," Craig said before also mentioning Scott Stevens and Massie.

"One of the reasons we've recruited Brad Moran is because of the situation we found ourselves in last year with both Nathan Bock and Ben Rutten out injured at the same time - we got exposed in that area.

"The guys did a fantastic job covering those positions, but they were often playing in positions or against opponents that weren't ideal for them. But keep in mind that Brad Moran is a three-game AFL player.

"We like what we see and he's done everything he's been asked to do, but he's an inexperienced player."

Meanwhile, the decision to move Simon Goodwin, Tyson Edwards and Andrew McLeod into the Adelaide forward line has received a strong endorsement from the club's defensive group, who haven't enjoyed marking them in pre-season drills.

"We talked to our defenders and they openly say they wouldn't want to stand Goodwin, McLeod and Edwards all in the forward line," Craig said.

"It will create some concern for the opposition, but the challenge for us is whether we can do it and afford to keep those three guys in the forward line, and that depends on performance all over the field.

"[But] it would be fantastic wouldn't it? And Brett [Burton] in there as well."