Arabic version: السوانز يستضيفون الغربان في اختبار الأربعة الأوائل ليلة الجمعة

Sydney and Adelaide met in a Friday night showdown at the SCG that carried top-four implications for both clubs. The match was billed as a potential preview of this year’s qualifying final and was covered live by Andrew McGarry for ABC.

According to ABC News, conditions at the SCG were damp, with about 5mm of rain since this morning, and closer to 35mm over the last day or so. There were showers moving toward the general vicinity that evening — “they might miss the SCG, they might not, but it seems likely things will be a little bit slippery” — a factor that could influence handling and tempo.

There were no late changes to either side. Sydney made four changes to the team that lost to Fremantle the previous week, bringing in Malcolm Rosas Jr, Logan McDonald, Riley Bice and Braeden Campbell — Campbell returning for his first game of the season after a stress fracture of the shin. The Swans omitted Caiden Cleary, Joel Hamling, Tom Hanily and Harry Kyle.

Adelaide adjusted its lineup as well. Rory Laird’s ankle injury put him out of the contest, while Taylor Walker was managed into the side; Hugo Hall-Kahan and Isaac Cumming were the other ins for the Crows. The preview noted Walker was one short of the 700-goal mark in AFL as he was managed back into selection.

The fixture carried clear ladder stakes. Second-placed Sydney had slipped to a loss last week but remained in a position to host a qualifying final if they recovered, while Adelaide had won four of its past five matches and could strengthen its bid for a top-four, double-chance finish with a victory. The live blog pointed out that a Sydney loss could all but hand the minor premiership to Fremantle and keep the Crows right in the hunt for the double chance, whereas an Adelaide defeat would let in Melbourne (the Demons) and Brisbane (the Lions) to lay claim to fourth spot.

Andrew McGarry opened ABC’s coverage noting the hope for a clean contest after an attritional game the previous night and inviting readers to follow the live blog. The result of this Friday night clash was presented as potentially influential on teams’ runs into September, with implications for the minor premiership and which clubs would retain a top-four or double-chance path into the finals.

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