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Adelaide had a risky coaching decision that backfired horribly, with Josh Worrell picking up a wrist injury just minutes after Crows replaced Daniel Curtin from AFL collision with Brisbane game for tactical reasons.
Despite not being injured, Curtin was subbed off at half-time after just five touches in the first half.
WATCH ABOVE: Josh Worrell drops just after Adelaide make their substitute.
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It was a brave move by Matthew Nix and his coaching staff to pull the trigger so early in the game, given that it meant they risked playing less if they suffered an injury.
Richmond’s three-time No. 1 player, Jack Riewoldt, immediately got his concerns.
“It’s a big decision to make a half-time substitute,” he said.
“If you pick up an injury now… It was a tactical substitute – that’s a big decision at half-time.”
Surely true to Murphy’s Law, Worrell went down just two minutes later after his arm was trapped under his body by a crushing tackle from Cam Reiner.
“That’s why making a substitution is really risky when you make it at half-time when that player (substitute) is not injured,” Riewoldt said.
Four-time Hawthorn hero Jordan Lewis agreed with Riewoldt.
“There’s so much that can happen during the game,” Lewis said.
“There’s an injury in the first three minutes, so you can’t predict that’s going to happen.
“But you’re tying your hands if you pull the trigger early.”
Riewoldt added: “It’s a high risk. The players went in (at halftime), got cold, potentially didn’t warm up again.
“You can’t predict the injury but I would still think five to 10 minutes in you’d think ‘just wait and see.’ And even give the player – he was substituted so he didn’t play great – but just give him a chance to maybe find his way back and really show something and fight back in the second half.
Worrell rose from the ground in the arms of Adelaide trainers as he held his arm.
“It’s a lot of pain he’s in,” Dwayne Russell said.
This meant that Curtin was stranded on the bench, unable to set foot on the ground despite being fully fit
Worrell took no further part in the game.
“Fingers are crossed for ‘Woz,'” the Crows said.
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