The Adelaide Crows may be ruing recent list management decisions, according to former Crow Bryce Gibbs.
Paul Seedsman was on Tuesday placed on the club’s inactive list as he continues to deal with lingering concussion symptoms more than a year later from a head knock. It comes a week after Fisher McAsey walked away from his AFL career.
Two list positions have now been opened up for Adelaide, the first of which was filled by ex-Magpie Tyler Brown as a pre-season supplemental selection.
It comes after a list management decision that was heavily scrutinized late last year. Mid-season draftee Brett Turner was cut without playing a game in October, despite continuing to impress in the SANFL.
As Gibbs notes, with the recent list changes potentially not unexpected by the Crows, Turner must consider himself especially unlucky.
“It sort of begs the question: what were they thinking, the Crows?” Gibbs said of last year’s delistings on SEN SA Breakfast.
“The Fischer McAsey situation, he took leave in November so you’re unsure how that’s going to play out and you respect his wishes to step away.
“Then shortly after he comes back and says, 'I’m not keen to continue this at the moment'.
“Then the Paul Seedsman situation, how long have they known that he potentially could be inactive? We don’t know.”
Gibbs added that he wasn’t convinced Adelaide made the right call delisting Turner, who collected 26, 25 and 26 disposals in Adelaide’s three finals in the SANFL.
“So when you’ve got guys, especially Brett Turner, who they recruit in the mid-season draft, they know they’re not going to make finals, they didn’t give him an opportunity to see if he could play at the level,” Gibbs continued.
“That didn’t occur, normally you would go we’ll give you another 12 months in the system, he was coming off an injury at the time mid-season.
“They didn’t go down that path, they decided not to, and only a couple of months later they have a couple of list spots available and go and find other talent out there.
“I can imagine he (Turner) would be extremely disappointed and pretty angry at how the situation’s played out.”
The Crows are yet to confirm if there are any train-on players in contention for the final list spot via the pre-season supplemental selection period.