Matthew Nicks' side has shown significant improvement in 2021, outperforming their expectations and putting up some fantastic performances.

However, the Crows still have a fair way to go, and with the help of these five players, could come along in leaps and bounds in the next few seasons.

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We kick off our ‘Five trade targets for every club' series with the Adelaide Crows. The idea of these stories is to identify potentially gettable targets who could fill roles, not just link every club to the likes of Marcus Bontempelli and Patrick Cripps.

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So in no particular order, here is it – five players we think Adelaide should have on their hit list.

3. Callum Wilkie (St. Kilda)

A stalwart of the Saints' back six, Wilkie has been solid in defence for Brett Ratten's side since joining the club as a mature-aged rookie. At 25 years of age, he still has some of his best footy in front of him and being elevated to the side's leadership group and featuring in every game since he joined the club speaks volumes about his character.

His ability one-on-one as well as his intercept ability means that he would be a great fit for Adelaide, especially off the back of Kyle Hartigan's departure and Daniel Talia's age. He did commit to the Saints until the end of 2023 earlier this year, but money talks and we know how irrelevant contracts can be these days.

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The Crows would have to dangle a carrot in front of St. Kilda's face to get Wilkie on board.