Cam Ellis-Yolmen’s season-ending knee injury is the latest bad news for the Crows, particularly through the midfield.

All-Australian Rory Sloane (fractured eye socket), veteran Scott Thompson (shoulder), Brad Crouch (hamstring) and Paul Seedsman (groin) are all currently out of action.

Of those, Sloane will probably be ready for their round-one clash with the Giants, who are expected to be one of the AFL’s pacesetters this season.

Adelaide used just 29 players last season on the way to their second-straight sixth placing.

They were the only team to use less than 30 players.

The Western Bulldogs’ shocking run of injuries meant they used 39 on the way to the premiership, while Richmond’s 41 was the most.

The Crows will have 11 players unavailable for Sunday’s pre-season game against Geelong at Adelaide Oval.

The number of midfield injuries will be of particular concern for coach Don Pyke, who has said during the pre-season that they need to do better in contested possessions.

He noted it was an area where the Crows sometimes lost ground last season.

Adelaide sought to bolster their midfield ranks in the trade period, but missed out on luring Carlton’s Bryce Gibbs while losing seasoned on-baller Jarryd Lyons to Gold Coast.

One piece of good injury news for Adelaide so far this pre-season has been defender Andy Otten, who played in Friday night’s loss to Richmond.

It was Otten’s first senior game since he badly hurt his right knee in round 20, 2014 and needed a reconstruction.

-AAP