Straight sets: Why finals disaster is the best feedback for Nicks

The Adelaide Crows have gone from hero to zero, claiming the minor premiership before crashing out in straight sets.

A disappointing finals series saw Matthew Nicks' men fall to Collingwood in the first final, before being outplayed by eighth-placed Hawthorn to lose by 34 in their own backyard.

Having had two home finals, all looked in the Crows' favour to mount a charge at the premiership in 2025, however a lack of composed football and the loss of Izak Rankine proved the difference.

Speaking on the AFL Nation call, Kane Cornes expressed his concern for the Crows entering next season.

“This is not just a loss,” Cornes said.

“This is a heavy beating from a team who has come over here with a mission. It’s been a mission to score off turnover.

“This is a big story. Adelaide, the best team in the home and away season, two home finals, finish on top of the ladder and it is straight sets, convincingly.

“This is going to take some time to recover from. We saw what happened to Sydney last year in the finals, this is just as bad.”

Following the loss, the Crows bow out after what was ultimately a successful season, however finishing far from their desired outcome will leave plenty of questions over the off-season.

Those feelings of disappointment were the ones that Nicks expressed in the post-game press conference as they look to implement the feedback provided from the last two games.   “Disappointment is the overriding one,” he said.  

“But there is also pride there in the season we put out.

“But the disappointment one seems to override that this point, and it’s similar in our playing group and a lot of our staff.

“For a season where we did whatever we had to do to give ourselves the best opportunity, finals football gives you feedback.

“And we’ve got the best feedback in years that we still have a fair bit of work to do.”