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The five Crows that must play midfield in 2026
SEN • November 25th, 2025 6:30 pm
Despite claiming their third ever minor premiership, Adelaide exited their 2025 campaign with plenty of work to do.
Finishing in the bottom four in 2024, the Crows flew to the pinnacle of the competition, led by superstar captain Jordan Dawson and an unconventional three-tall forward line.
However, a straight sets exit in September indicated that the side was far from complete, particularly within the engine room.
Having been beaten in the middle by both Collingwood and Hawthorn during their short-lived finals campaign, the Crows’ off-season checklist had to start with midfield reinforcements, commencing serious conversations with Christian Petracca before losing out to the Gold Coast Suns.
That said, Adelaide decided against on-ball recruits, opting instead to draft forward prospects Mitch Marsh and Archie Ludowyke following a failed swing at Essendon’s pick for South Australian talent Dyson Sharp.
The club also recruited forwards Callum Ah Chee out of Brisbane and Finnbar Maley out of North Melbourne, while locking down talented basketballer Indy Cotton as a Category B rookie.
Without any new faces to shake up the midfield mix, Crows’ premiership captain Mark Bickley was rather surprised that reinforcements weren’t sought out.
“The surprising thing for me is obviously the absence of midfielders,” Bickley told SEN SA Breakfast.
“The rhetoric from Adelaide was going to be, ‘we are going to be ultra-aggressive, we need to add to our midfield’ after they were effectively outplayed in both of their finals in the middle of the ground.
“The players they had in the midfield were Dawson, (Sam) Berry, (Jake) Soligo, (James) Peatling and Zac Taylor. They weren’t able to get it done.
“What it says to me is that the players that weren’t in the midfield during that finals series, they are looking to be in there.”
On that notion, Bickley ranked five players that were absent from Adelaide’s midfield in September that should be elevated on ball in 2026.
1. Izak Rankine
“Izak Rankine will spend some time in there, we know that he was out suspended.”
2. Sid Draper
“Sid Draper has had another pre-season, he is a very high draft pick, he is a pure midfielder, so we will see him in there no doubt next season.”
3. Josh Rachele
“Josh Rachele, I expect to get more midfield time.”
4. Dan Curtin
“I would be looking at Dan Curtin in the midfield. To me, the wing is not his long-term position. Let’s have a look at him in the midfield.”
5. Luke Pedlar
“Luke Pedlar is another that I think has to be. You have to find out about Luke Pedlar in there.”
“Pedlar was Pick 11; the others were all top 10 draft picks. We’re talking high, high talent and skill, they have to be given minutes in the midfield next year.”
Listen to Bickley's full discussion below:
