Big man Jacobs needs more support

Sam Jacobs slumps while Matthew Lobbe and Brad Ebert come in for a high-five after the siren. Picture: Sarah Reed. Source: The Advertiser

IT'S not Sam Jacobs' fault ... but Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson now seems compelled to revisit his reluctance to play two dedicated ruckmen.

The Crows' determination to keep its 2012 team structure - by simply replacing Kurt Tippett with Josh Jenkins as a key forward who backs up lead ruckman Jacobs - appears to be courting failure.

Adelaide now seems better served to:

RECALL Shaun McKernan to support Jacobs.
KEEP 14-game Jenkins as a key forward.

The immediate benefits are:

PROTECTING Jacobs, who is being subjected - as highlighted by Port Adelaide in Showdown XXXIV on Sunday - to more body clashes in ruck duels. This battering will make it impossible for Jacobs to be in peak condition later in the season.

GIVE Adelaide's attack a permanent, go-to tall forward - Jenkins - who can bring the Crows specialist small forwards into the contest.

SAVE key forward Taylor Walker from playing more time behind centre as the "transition" player linking Adelaide's defence and forwards.

Jacobs, an All-Australian contender last year, has been subjected to savage appraisals in the wake of the Showdown loss to the Power.

Even Sanderson declared post-match that "(Jacobs) is one of our players who needs to lift - and he knows that."

"We're not getting the dominance we're used to there, so he is one player who is going to have to find form very quickly," added Sanderson.

But Jacobs' numbers are far from disappointing when compared to last season. He is averaging 29 hit-outs compared to 31 last season. Hit-outs to advantage has slipped marginally from a 9.7 average to 7.7.

But - as a true indicator of Adelaide's problems in the midfield - Jacobs is having to win twice as many clearances as he did last year.

The critical number of change with Adelaide is how the Jacobs-Tippett tandem gave the Crows a +7.8 edge on hit-outs last season; the Jacobs-Jenkins combo is -7.7 against opposition ruckmen.

By accepting Tippett - who has defected to Sydney - cannot be replaced by one player, Sanderson is compelled to use McKernan as Jacobs' tandem partner and leave Jenkins at the goalfront.

Jenkins notes this "would make my job a little bit easier".

"And it would make things easier for our small forwards," said Jenkins on radio FIVEaa. "I do enjoy getting up in the (centre) ruck and boundary and getting involved in the game when it is quiet up forward.

"It would make my job a little bit easier when I'm trying to learn the craft of two positions.

"But when we are not defending well (as a team) we have to think would another big body help us defend and put pressure on the opposition. It is a double-edged sword.

"The coaches would look at bringing more size into the forward line, but we have to look at the defensive side too."

That double-edge sword was exposed when Adelaide last played three tall forwards - in Brisbane in round 21 last season. The Crows lost and Sanderson has appeared reluctant to revisit this model.

Sanderson noted loading his team with talls - Jacobs, Tippett, Walker and Jenkins - allowed the Lions to move the ball from their defence too easily.

Walker's need to spend more and more time behind centre - a sign the Adelaide midfield has lost potency and the traditional Crows rebound from defence is failing - is making him a less-threatening forward.

"He transitions up the ground - and he has to turn around and get inside-50," says Sanderson of Walker's role.
He disputes Walker is being dragged to deep behind centre.

"You work up the ground; you work back," said Sanderson. "He has to push up to defend and then he has to work back inside-50.

"It is the same as what Richard Douglas or Rory Sloane or Jared Petrenko or Graham Johncock. Those guys have to work to defence and work back to our goals as well."

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