JORDAN DAWSON
2023 AF L C LU B C HAM P I O N
EBONY MARINOFF
2 0 2 3 A F LW C L U B C H A M P I O N
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT TO COUNTRY The Adelaide Football Club acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders as the traditional owners of country throughout Australia and their ongoing connection to land and waters. We pay our respects to them, their diverse cultures and elders that were, are, and will be.
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
2
HAI RMAN AN D CEO
C HAI R MAN
HON JOHN OLSEN AO
C E O
TIM SILVERS
"WE HEAD INTO THE NEW YEAR WITH PLENTY OF MOMENTUM AND WELL PLACED TO CAPITALISE ON OUR RECENT HARD WORK. EXCITING TIMES ARE AHEAD BOTH ON AND OFF THE FIELD." The AFL industry never sits still and even this week, just days before Christmas, we arrived at a significant and exciting milestone for our Club. We finished the year with the City of West Torrens granting us a long-term lease to make Thebarton Oval, and part of the adjoining Kings Reserve, our permanent new home with the redeveloped precinct to have widereaching benefits for the community as well. As Chairman and CEO, we have made this project our number one priority, aside from winning games of football, and a formal development application is now being lodged. We are officially a very big step closer to delivering our players, coaches, staff, members and fans a worldclass training and administration headquarters, and perhaps most importantly, a home ground for our hugely successful AFLW team to play its games. Once again our women’s team, led by Coach Matthew Clarke and Captain Chelsea Randall, was in the top echelon of the competition this year. Although we fell agonisingly short of a fifth grand final after finishing on top of the ladder, the season was another strong endorsement of the culture and environment in which individuals can thrive while chasing the ultimate team success.
Four players made the AFLW AllAustralian team – including first-timers Niamh Kelly and Danielle Ponter – alongside Chelsea Biddell and Ebony Marinoff, and Marinoff was named Club Champion for the second time. It is also important to recognise outgoing Captain Chelsea Randall who has announced she is stepping down from the role which she has held since the team’s inception in 2017. Chelsea has played a major role in driving the high standards and team camaraderie in our AFLW program and although handing over the reins as skipper, it’s great that she will continue with us as a player in the years to come. Our AFL team experienced another year of growth and while we didn’t get the reward we were after which was a finals berth, we played a highly competitive and entertaining brand of football against the competition’s top teams. It holds us in good stead for when we make it to September and that’s firmly in our sights in 2024. Opening the AFL’s inaugural Gather Round with a win over Carlton, winning both Showdowns and Taylor Walker’s 10-goal haul in his 250th game against West Coast were among the many highlights. Walker deservedly received his first AllAustralian blazer, alongside first-year Captain Jordan Dawson who relished
the role and was also named our Club Champion for the first time. Our SANFL team also enjoyed another strong season with a second consecutive preliminary final appearance and Michael Godden recognised as the AFL Coaches’ Association Development Coach of the Year for the second year in a row. Off-field, the Club is in a financially strong position with corporate backing that is the envy of many sporting teams across the country. It is you, our passionate and paidup members, who underpin our prosperity though. Breaking our alltime membership record was one of the year’s absolute highlights and we would like to sincerely thank you for your unwavering support. We head into the New Year with plenty of momentum and well placed to capitalise on our recent hard work. Exciting times are ahead both on and off the field. Go Crows!
Hon John Olsen AO
Tim Silvers
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
3
FL SE N IOR COAC
AF L
S E N I O R
C OAC H
MATTHEW NICKS
“ONE OF THE DEFINING ASPECTS OF OUR SEASON HAS BEEN THE HEART AND RESILIENCE DISPLAYED BY THIS GROUP.” WATCH:
CLICK HERE FOR KEY EXTRACTS FROM MATTHEW NICK'S CLUB CHAMPION SPEECH.
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
4
AN FL SE N IOR COACH
SAN F L
S E N I O R
C OAC H
MICK GODDEN “IT WAS UNFORTUNATE THE WAY WE WENT OUT, BUT IT WAS ALSO REALLY FORTUNATE THE WAY WE PLAYED OUR SEASON.” WATCH:
CLICK HERE FOR KEY EXTRACTS FROM MICK GODDEN'S CLUB CHAMPION SPEECH.
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
5
FLW SE N IOR COAC
A F LW
S E N I O R
C OAC H
MATTHEW CLARKE
"EVEN THOUGH WE LOST, THERE WAS SO MUCH GOOD AND SO MUCH RIGHT ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED THIS YEAR, THAT I JUST CAN'T HELP BUT FEEL IMMENSELY PROUD AND IMMENSELY GRATEFUL." WATCH:
CLICK HERE FOR KEY EXTRACTS FROM MATTHEW CLARKE'S CLUB CHAMPION SPEECH.
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
6
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Tim Silvers
2023 BOARD OF DIRECTORS
HON JOHN OLSEN AO
LINDA FELLOWS
Chairman
Deputy Chair
IMELDA LYNCH
WARREN RANDALL
SHANTI BERGGREN
KATE ELLIS
RICHARD FENNELL
MARK RICCIUTO
STEPHEN ROCHE
GRAEME GOODINGS
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON ADELAIDE'S BOARD MEMBERS, CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW VISIT:
AFC BOARD PAGE
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
7
WATCH:
DAWSON'S WINNER SPEECH
WATCH:
HATELY'S SANFL HIGHLIGHTS
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE MALCOLM BLIGHT WINNER, THE SANFL CLUB CHAMPION AND OTHER AWARDS, CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW VISIT:
AFC WEBSITE
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE AFLW CLUB CHAMPION, CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW VISIT:
WATCH:
MARINOFF'S WINNER SPEECH
AFC WEBSITE
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
8
The Adelaide Football Club is proud to have the support of fans around Australia, including those who are Members of our supporter groups.
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON OUR SUPPORTER GROUPS, CLICK THE BUTTON BELOW VISIT:
SUPPORTER GROUPS
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
HOW YOUR SUPPORT
CROWS SUPPORTER GROUPS
9
THE CROWS COMMUNITY
KUWA CIRCLES
VISIT:
OPEN PARACHUTE PROGRAM
VISIT:
ACF WEBSITE
ACF WEBSITE
TRIP TO APY LANDS
STEMFOOTY
VISIT:
ACF WEBSITE
VISIT:
ACF WEBSITE
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
10
I N D I G E N O U S
G U E R N S EY
ONE CLUB, ONE CONNECTION Adelaide launched its 2023 Indigenous guernsey in May, with a heartfelt family link to two-time AFLW Premiership player Danielle Ponter. The guernsey – which was worn by the Club’s AFL, AFLW and SANFL sides, was designed by Anmatyerr educator and artist April Napangardi Campbell from the Ti Tree community in the Northern Territory. Campbell is Ponter’s Aunty and the two met recently in Adelaide, having only ever spoken over the phone after their family lost connection when Ponter’s grandfather on her mother’s side was forcibly removed from traditional lands as a two-year-old. READ MORE:
2023 INDIGENOUS GUERNSEY
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
11
M E N'S
T EAM
2023
PARTNERS MAJOR PARTNER
PRINCIPAL PARTNER
PREMIER PARTNERS
OFFICIAL PARTNERS
OPSYS
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
13
WO M E N'S
T EAM
2023
PARTNERS MAJOR PARTNER
PREMIER & OFFICIAL PARTNERS
ADELAIDE CROWS 2023 YEARBOOK
14
afc.com.au