For Sloane, it’s Dusty overload

DUSTY this, Dusty that. Adelaide’s Rory Sloane is tiring of all the Dusty talk.

The Crows vice-captain says Saturday’s AFL Grand Final isn’t Adelaide against Richmond’s Brownlow medallist Dustin Martin.

“They’re not just a oneman team, it’s not just the Dusty show,” Sloane said yesterday.

“The reason why Richmond have got into a grand final, their midfield goes really deep.

“They have got a lot of stars in there and a lot of guys that have played unbelievable years.

“They all chip in and play their role and Dusty is just the same as everyone there.”

Sloane, in front of eight cameras at a media conference at Adelaide’s West Lakes headquarters, thought that was the Dusty question, dealt with. But what about the Dusty fend-off: how do you tackle him?

“Tackling is a lot about intent and just your aggression to get at blokes,” Sloane said, dodging the issue.

A journalist later tried again: the Dusty fend-off, how do you handle it? “Again, it’s just not a Dustin Martin team,” Sloane said. “There’s another 21 guys out there that we have got focus on.

“Yeah, he’s a big part of that team. And we certainly want to take him down and make sure we stick those tackles when we can.

“But there a lot of other parts of football we are focusing on that we need to get right to beat Richmond.”

Sloane, who topped Adelaide’s voting in the Brownlow count with 20 votes, said he was unfazed by the prospect of receiving a hard tag in the grand final. “Wait and see what happens,” he said.