Adelaide’s remarkable climb from 15th in 2024 to this season’s minor premiers came to a crushing halt on Saturday night, with captain Jordan Dawson describing their semi-final defeat to Hawthorn as “pretty devastating.”
The Crows bowed out of September in straight sets, their first finals campaign since 2017 ending in front of more than 52,000 fans at Adelaide Oval.
The 28-year-old skipper, in just his third season wearing the armband, said the result should not eclipse the growth of the side but accepted there was plenty to learn.
‘It’s going to hurt, but we will learn’
“Obviously, I am very proud of the group and where we have come from, but also so disappointed that our season is done, and that we couldn’t play the way that we really wanted to,” Dawson said.
“The growth of the group has been unbelievable… We’ll have to learn from this and get better, but also take away some real positives.”
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He pointed to Hawthorn’s ability to control momentum and execute cleanly as key differences on the night. “Our skill execution going inside the forward half (cost us), and then their ability to be clean around the contest and use the ball on the outside is something we didn’t handle too well,” he admitted. “We got some pretty harsh feedback that we aren’t ready for finals, yet, it’s going to hurt, but we will learn from it and improve.”
Dawson, one of only seven Crows with previous finals experience, believes this campaign will steel his younger teammates. “Finals footy is another level up and there’s certain things you have to bring… We’ll learn from it and hopefully be here again next year.”
He also thanked the club’s supporters, saying: “They’ve been unbelievable all year… I’m disappointed we couldn’t finish the season the way we all wanted to, but I can’t thank them enough for their support, through thick and thin.”