Terry Wallace says it "beggars belief" young Adelaide forward Darcy Fogarty has not been able to crack the senior side more often this year after a near match-winning five-goal effort against West Coast last Sunday.
The Crows took it up to the reigning premiers in Perth with Fogarty, in just his second AFL game for the season, playing a leading hand inside 50 only for his side to go down by 10 points.
AFL Hall of Famer Wallace believes the highly touted forward will prosper if he plays regular senior football.
“They dropped (Josh) Jenkins for a month, no Fogarty. (Tom) Lynch has been out at times with injury, no Fogarty. It beggars belief for me,” Wallace said on SEN's The Match Committee.
“We hear that he hasn’t had a very successful season in the SANFL, but he’s been playing full back, playing in other roles they they’ve actually tried to manufacture.”
Fogarty had been averaging 12 disposals per game in the 15 he had played for Adelaide’s SANFL contingent until coach Don Pyke released the shackles and played him against the Eagles.
Wallace was adamant the 19-year-old forward, picked up at number 12 in the 2017 AFL National Draft, should be left in the senior side to help fast track his development.
“We know he’s good enough and there he is in WA. All of a sudden Jenkins is not in the side, there’s your positions and he stumps up in WA against the best team in the comp and kicks five,” Wallace said.
“Sometimes if you wait for a bloke, particularly when you’re throwing them around, if you wait for them to get form when you know they’re good enough you might be waiting for a long time.
“Some blokes just play better with better players around them and he seems like one of those.”
Fogarty has again been named in the forward line this weekend as the Crows prepare to do battle against Collingwood at Adelaide Oval on Saturday night in a do-or-die clash.