Adelaide will descend on the SCG on Friday night without a number of key players but Swans Head of Development John Blakey expects the Crows to fire.
Among the Crows’ most notable omissions are forward Eddie Betts, midfielder Rory Sloane and brothers Matt and Brad Crouch.
But Blakey said the Crows’ formidable forwards would make for a stern test.
“Last year we saw how capable that forward line is,” Blakey said.
“They’re able to create scores better than any side in the competition. With Taylor Walker up there, the captain, leading the way and Lynch a great link player and Jenkins who can take a great contested grab and kick a score.
“They’ve got plenty of firepower up there so as a midfield we’ve got to make sure the ball comes through under heat because they will score if it doesn’t.”
The Crows averaged a competition-high 110 points per game in 2017 and have shown glimpses of their electric best this season.
Jenkins (five goals) and Walker (four) were firing on all cylinders as Adelaide piled on 118 points against Richmond in Round 2.
Walker kicked another three majors against St Kilda the following week as he led with aggression up and down the ground and proved a handful one-one-one.
In the Swans’ camp, defender Harry Marsh will return to the final 22 after impressing in the NEAFL.
“Harry comes back and gives us a bit of adaptability down there,” Blakey said.
“He can play on talls and smalls and that’s going to be important against Adelaide’s forward line. We expect him to hold one of those keys down tonight for us.”
Speedster Gary Rohan will also return to action after missing last week’s match due to the arrival of his twin girls.
Blakey said it was great to welcome him back to the side.
“It is absolutely fabulous to have him back,” Blakey said.
“It was a tough week last week for him obviously and he’s got the birth of his beautiful daughters and Bella’s doing well. It’s great to have him back and he’s keen to put on some heat early.”