Brad Crouch

Bradley Crouch (born 14 January 1994) is a professional Australian rules footballer playing for the St Kilda Football Club in the Australian Football League (AFL). He was recruited by the Adelaide Football Club with the second selection in the 2011 mini-draft.[1] He is the older brother and former teammate of Matt Crouch.[2]

Brad Crouch
Crouch playing in June 2019.
Personal information
Full name Bradley Crouch
Date of birth (1994-01-14) 14 January 1994
Original team(s) North Ballarat Rebels (TAC Cup)
Draft No. 2, 2011 mini-draft
Height 186 cm (6 ft 1 in)
Weight 85 kg (187 lb)
Position(s) Midfielder
Club information
Current club St Kilda
Number 5
Playing career1
Years Club Games (Goals)
2013–2020 Adelaide 95 (34)
2021– St Kilda 0 (0)
Total 95 (34)
1 Playing statistics correct to the end of 2020.
Career highlights
Sources: AFL Tables, AustralianFootball.com

AFL career

Early Adelaide Career

Playing for Vic Country in the 2011 AFL Under 18 Championships, Crouch was named in the Under-18 All-Australian side as a half-back flanker.[3] After this, he was drafted a year earlier than usual under the 2011 mini-draft rules, and was not permitted to play in 2012. Instead, he played for West Adelaide in the SANFL.[4] However, he did get special clearance from the AFL to play one pre-season game for Adelaide against the Brisbane Lions in Alice Springs. During the season he injured his hamstring and missed out on two months of football.[5]

Despite playing a major role in the 2013 pre-season, Crouch did not play in the Crows' first game for the season. After impressing in the SANFL,[6] Crouch made his AFL debut in Round 2, 2013, against the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba.[7] After struggling with hamstring injuries early in the season, he played the last 10 games in succession, immediately establishing himself as one of the club's premier midfielders, and winning an AFL Rising Star nomination in round 14 after a breakout performance against Gold Coast which included 31 possessions and a game-high 6 tackles.[8] He finished second in the Rising Star award to Gold Coast player Jaeger O'Meara,[9] and also won Adelaide's Emerging Talent Award.[10] At the end of 2013, Crouch signed a three-year contract extension, keeping him at the Crows until the end of 2016,[11] and his brother Matt Crouch was drafted in the 2013 AFL draft to join him at the club.[12]

Crouch continued to struggle with injury over the next couple of years. In 2014 he suffered a fractured leg in the round two Showdown,[13] which allowed his brother Matt Crouch to make his debut the next week. The two brothers played together at senior level for the first time in the SANFL for the Crows' reserves side in Round 9 when Crouch had recovered from his latest injury.[14] He returned to the AFL side in Round 15, coincidentally for the next Showdown,[15] and went on to play the final nine games of the year, before a foot injury prevented him from playing a game in 2015.

2016

After Crows star Patrick Dangerfield left the club to play for Geelong, there was pressure on Crouch to help fill the void in the club's midfield in 2016,[16] compounded by the fact that there were still question marks on whether his body would stay fit enough to play consistently.[17] Even worse for Crouch in the pre-season, he was dropped to the reserves before the season had even begun for disciplinary reasons.[18] He was able to make his way into the senior side for the first round and played well,[19] but he was pulled from the side in Round 3 due to hamstring soreness.[20] This injury forced him to stay out of the side for two weeks before he returned to the reserves side with an impressive 36 possessions and 10 clearances.[21] He returned to the AFL for the Crows' Round 7 clash with the Western Bulldogs, but was dropped from the side again two weeks later. His form improved over the next month in the reserves and he forced his way back into the side in Round 14.[22] He again recaptured his best form towards the end of the season, playing the final 12 games during which he averaged 25 disposals.[23] Despite speculation during the season that Crouch would reject new contract offers from Adelaide and ask for a trade to another club,[24] he accepted a four-year extension worth approximately $2.4 million towards the end of the season, keeping him at the club until 2020.[25]

2017 – Grand Final Appearance

Crouch suffered a hamstring injury in 2017 that ruled him out of the entire pre-season and put him in doubt for round 1 of the regular season.[26] He played in the SANFL for the first few rounds of the season due to concerns that he would struggle in the AFL after missing a large amount of the pre-season.[27] His SANFL form, 40 and 31 disposals in back to back games, warranted his return to the AFL side in Round 5 against the Gold Coast Suns,[28] where he amassed 22 disposals to half time and 33 for the match in a 67-point win.[29] His form continued to improve, as did his brother's. In the Crows' Round 18 match against Geelong, Crouch fractured his cheekbone in the third quarter, but fought through the pain and played out the rest of the match.[30] He had to have surgery and missed out on the next game.[31] In the final round of the home and away season in the last AFL game ever played at Subiaco Oval, Crouch and his brother needed a combined 60 disposals to break a record for the most disposals in an AFL season by brothers, previously held by Kane Cornes and Chad Cornes from cross-town rivals Port Adelaide. By half-time, they already had a massive 50 disposals between them. They passed the Cornes brothers late in the third quarter and got a total of 87 disposals by the end of the match, making the new record 1,202 disposals.[32] He finished the season playing in the 2017 AFL Grand Final against Richmond, which the Crows lost by 48 points.[33]

2019–present

After missing the entire 2018 season with a groin injury, Crouch went on to become one of seven Crows to play all 22 games in 2019. He averaged 30 disposals a game and won the Malcolm Blight Medal as the Crows' best and fairest. Crouch received a season-high 18 of a possible 20 medal votes in Adelaide’s win over Richmond in Round 13, collecting a career-high 43 disposals, 11 clearances, six inside-50s and four rebound-50s. Crouch averaged a career-best 30.2 disposals (ranked eighth across the AFL home and away season) and finished second at the Club for clearances and tackles with totals of 117 and 111. The midfielder also made 86 inside-50s - the most of any Crow that season - to go with 11 goals. He also collected 14 Brownlow votes, and received the maximum three votes in two games - Round 11 and Round 13.[34] At the conclusion of the season, Crouch's management explored potential suitors at rival clubs which eventually culminated in a requested a trade to the Gold Coast Suns following interest from St Kilda and Geelong. Crouch sought a move to a club willing to pay a $5 million contract over five seasons.[35] Late in the Trade Period Crouch approached the Suns and lowered his asking price in a bid to complete a trade. The Gold Coast board ultimately blocked the deal given the high draft pick cost of completing the trade and their commitment to securing the services of Matt Rowell and Noah Anderson in the upcoming draft.[36]

Crouch played the first eight rounds of the shortened 2020 season before sustaining a hamstring injury. Crouch rejoined the side in round 15 and played the final four games of the season. In shortened 16-minute quarters and a 17-game season due to the Coronavirus Pandemic, Crouch averaged 22 disposals a game, collecting a season-high 31 disposals in the Crows' upset win over GWS in round 16. Crouch, along with teammate Tyson Stengle was reprimanded in October 2020 for 'conduct unbecoming' after both were searched by South Australian Police on 28 September and found to be in possession of an illicit substance. The AFL elected to ban the pair for matches in 2021 (as the season had concluded) with Stengle banned for four matches and Crouch banned for two. The conduct of Stengle and Crouch’s constitutes a notifiable adverse finding under the AFL’s Illicit Drugs Policy. [37]

On 21 October, Crouch nominated St Kilda as his preferred destination during the Free Agency Period following a contract offer from the club. Crouch was a 'Restricted Free Agent' under AFL rules, meaning the Crows were able to match the contract offer from the Saints to force a trade. Crouch had also attracted interest from Geelong, Richmond and Port Adelaide, although it is understood that only the Saints were prepared to offer a five-year contract.[38] On Sunday 1 November, the Saints lodged the paperwork for Crouch, with the Crows having three days to decide whether or not to match the bid.[39] Crouch himself spoke publicly of his desire for the Crows not to match the bid, stating that "I want them to not match. I've told St Kilda I'm fully committed to them, so I want to see that out. At this stage I just want to be at St Kilda and the decision I've made I'm fully committed to them."[40] He officially joined St Kilda on 4 November after Adelaide decided not to match at the deadline of 5pm. Adelaide received draft pick number 23 as compensation.[41]

Statistics
Statistics are correct to end of the 2020 season[42]
Legend
 G  Goals  B  Behinds  K  Kicks  H  Handballs  D  Disposals  M  Marks  T  Tackles
Season Team No. Games Totals Averages (per game)
G B K H D M T G B K H D M T
2013 Adelaide 2144515818534361620.30.411.313.224.54.44.4
2014 Adelaide 2115612514727226610.50.511.413.424.72.45.5
2015 Adelaide 20——————————————
2016 Adelaide 21641155213368261020.30.19.713.323.01.66.4
2017 Adelaide 220810237324561561370.40.511.916.228.12.86.9
2018 Adelaide 20——————————————
2019 Adelaide 2221112338326664651110.50.515.414.830.23.05.0
2020 Adelaide 2122113612726320440.20.111.310.621.91.73.7
Career 95 34 35 1149 1322 2471 254 517 0.4 0.4 12.1 13.9 26.0 2.7 5.4

References
  1. Windley, Matt (18 October 2011). "School comes first for Adelaide recruit Brad Crouch". Herald Sun.
  2. Capel, Andrew (22 November 2013). "Brothers Matt and Brad Crouch join forces for the Adelaide Crows". The Advertiser.
  3. Metro dominate AA selections Archived 10 September 2011 at the Wayback Machine – afl.com.au. Written by Jason Phelan. Published 9 July 2011. Retrieved 4 September 2011.
  4. Milbank, Zac (6 October 2012). "Brad Crouch has big things in store". The Advertiser.
  5. Crouch, Brad (26 September 2012). "In the Words of: Brad Crouch". afc.com.au. Adelaide Football Club. Retrieved 27 August 2017.
  6. Gill, Katrina (2 April 2013). "Coach coy on possible Crouch debut". afc.com.au. Adelaide Football Club.
  7. Whiting, Michael (6 April 2013). "Crows down Lions in the wet". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League. Retrieved 8 April 2013.
  8. Davidson, Ryan (2 July 2013). "Crouch stands up to win Rising Star nod". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  9. Bowen, Nick (4 September 2013). "O'Meara named Rising Star". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  10. Gill, Katrina (6 September 2013). "Sloane crowned 2013 Club Champion". afc.com.au. Adelaide Football Club.
  11. Rucci, Michelangelo (6 September 2013). "Adelaide midfielder Brad Crouch to remain a Crow until end of 2016". The Advertiser.
  12. Capel, Andrew (22 November 2013). "Brother Matt and Brad Crouch join forces for the Adelaide Crows". Herald Sun.
  13. Gill, Katrina (8 April 2014). "Brad's unlucky break". AFC.com.au. Adelaide Football Club.
  14. "Crouch brothers unite". AFC.com.au. Adelaide Football Club. 5 June 2014.
  15. Mammone, Christian (29 June 2014). "Crows down Power to end Showdown drought". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  16. Bowen, Nick (29 December 2015). "The AFL's best midfields in 2016: Where does your team rank?". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  17. King, Travis (23 March 2016). "Burning questions: Three big issues for your club in 2016". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  18. "Club statement: team selection". AFC.com.au. Adelaide Football Club. 10 March 2016.
  19. Bowen, Nick (26 March 2016). "North ends Scott's round one hoodoo with thrilling win over Crows". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  20. Bowen, Nick (9 April 2016). "Baby dash sees Crow Tom Lynch fly home before Tigers clash". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  21. Gaskin, Lee (2 May 2016). "In-form Crow Rory Laird in doubt to face Dogs with toe injury". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  22. "AFL Team: Brad's Back". AFC.com.au. Adelaide Football Club. 22 June 2016.
  23. "Brad Crouch - AFC.com.au". AFC.com.au. Adelaide Football Club. Archived from the original on 3 April 2015. Retrieved 24 April 2015.
  24. "Mark Robinson tips Brad Crouch to leave the Crows". FIVEaa.com.au. Nova Entertainment. 14 June 2016. Retrieved 27 March 2017.
  25. Gaskin, Lee (12 August 2016). "Brad Crouch rejects rival interest to stay at Crows". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League. Retrieved 19 March 2017.
  26. Higgins, Ben (9 February 2017). "Brad Crouch will miss entire pre-season, in serious doubt for Round 1 after injury". The Advertiser.
  27. Capel, Andrew (12 April 2017). "Crows Midfielder Brad Crouch to remain in SANFL as selection debate continues".
  28. Olle, Sarah (18 April 2017). "AFL Early Mail, Round 5: Brad Crouch to bolster Adelaide's midfield, Daniel Wells set for Anzac Day debut, Swans big men set to return".
  29. Turner, Kieron (22 April 2017). "Brad Crouch feeling fresh after first game of 2017".
  30. Gaskin, Lee (22 July 2017). "Pyke praises mid for playing with facial fracture". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  31. Capel, Andrew (27 July 2017). "Brad Crouch and Jake Lever to miss Adelaide Crows' clash against Collingwood". The Advertiser.
  32. Coleman-Heard, Rory (27 August 2017). "Five talking points: West Coast v Adelaide". AFL.com.au. Australian Football League.
  33. Bowen, Nick (30 September 2017). "Match report: Terrific Tigers end 37-year wait". AFL.com.au. Bigpond. Retrieved 16 October 2017.
  34. "Brad Crouch wins first Club Champion". www.afc.com.au. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  35. "In-demand Crow wants to be AFL's next million-dollar man". www.afl.com.au. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  36. McClure, Sam (12 November 2019). "Revealed: Crouch's late pitch to join Gold Coast". The Age. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  37. "AFL 2020: Brad Crouch suspension, illicit substance, Tyson Stengle, Adelaide Crows, drugs, free agent, trade news". Fox Sports. 10 October 2020. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  38. "Make a Saint of me: Brad Crouch wants to join rising Vic club". www.afl.com.au. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  39. "Crows poised to match Crouch offer after bid for pick No.2 falls short". www.afl.com.au. Retrieved 1 November 2020.
  40. Cherny, Daniel (3 November 2020). "Crouch hopeful Crows don't match St Kilda offer". The Age. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
  41. "Crouch a Saint after Crows make late call not to match offer". www.afl.com.au. Retrieved 4 November 2020.
  42. "AFL Tables - Brad Crouch statistics". AFL Tables.
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