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Crows AFL coach hails former basketballer

Adelaide coach Don Pyke has praised the output of Hugh Greenwood after another promising AFL game by the former basketballer.

Jordan Gallucci (left) and Hugh Greenwood (right)
Adelaide coach Don Pyke has praised the output of Hugh Greenwood after another promising AFL game. (AAP)

Adelaide coach Don Pyke has lauded the blossoming of basketball-turned-footballer Hugh Greenwood in his AFL ladder leaders.

Greenwood followed last week's three-goal AFL debut with some eye-catching cameos in Adelaide's 100-point belting of Fremantle on Saturday night.

Greenwood only gathered 11 touches but laid eight tackles and kicked a goal in Adelaide's 22.23 (143) to 6.7 (43) win.

"He was influential without actually hitting the stats sheets significantly," Pyke said.

"His clearances, his hard-ball stuff and a couple of his key touches at times, it was good for Hugh."

Greenwood was playing basketball at the College of New Mexico when AFL scouts came calling.

But he resisted, instead returning to Australia to join NBL club Perth Wildcats in mid-2015 - only to change his mind two months later and switch to the AFL.

Adelaide secured the Tasmanian-born athlete as a category B rookie before promoting him to the senior list earlier this year.

Pyke described Greenwood's development since joining the Crows as "phenomenal", yet another positive in a promising season.

The belting of Fremantle was Adelaide's eighth win and ensures they'll keep top spot.

"It's probably the best we have played for a month," Pyke said.

"We played some really strong powerful footy early in the year but that is back to playing the way we want to play.

"In all phases of the game we were really strong."

But Pyke was mindful of Adelaide's next assignment: a trip to Geelong to face the Cats next Friday night.

"It's another great test. This comp just keeps throwing them up," Pyke said.


2 min read

Published

Source: AAP



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