IN MANY ways, the changes at Ebony Marinoff’s home reflect the changes happening at the Adelaide Crows.

The club is entering a new era in 2026, with a new coach, new recruits and a refreshed midfield.

At Marinoff’s house in Adelaide, it’s a new era too.

The 2024 AFLW Best and Fairest winner has two new housemates: former Richmond player Grace Egan and Crows draftee Chloe Bown.

Both joined Adelaide in the off-season - Egan arriving during trade period, while Bown was selected by the Crows with pick no.5 in the 2025 Telstra AFLW Draft.

They've also both benefited from Marinoff’s hospitality. The four-time Crows best and fairest has opened her home to help the two Melburnians settle into their new city.

"'Greg' (Egan) was maybe coming to the Crows, she hadn't made up her mind," Marinoff said.

"I actually lived with Zoe Prowse (former Crows teammate, now Essendon player) and at that time Zoe hadn't left yet, so Zoe was still a Crows player.

"So I said to Greg, look, if you pick Adelaide, you can stay with us, you know, for as long as you kind of need to make sure that you find a place or where you want to stay.

"Then I think it was when Zoe left, Greg was like, ‘Can I stay?’"

For 18-year-old Bown, Marinoff wanted to ensure the young recruit was in a comfortable and supportive environment to begin her AFLW career.

"I cannot believe we got her (Bown). We pretty much expected Chloe to go to Richmond (with the No.1 pick)," Marinoff said.

"I'd kind of got wind that she might stay in Adelaide with a host family. I feel like that's a big thing in the men's system, but probably not so much in the women's.

"I was like, 'If you need a place to stay…' I just thought that this would be a really great space for her to start her career.

"So I offered my place to her parents and said, ‘You think about that over the summer and, you know, what you want Chloe doing and living'.

"And she now lives here and I think her family are very happy."

The two new Crows could potentially both feature in the club’s new-look midfield in 2026.

The club experienced significant list changes in the off-season. Three-time premiership player Anne Hatchard was traded to the Gold Coast, rising star Brooke Boileau moved to Carlton, and key position player Zoe Prowse joined Essendon.

The Crows also delisted duo Abbie Ballard and Rachelle Martin, meaning spots in Adelaide's line-up are there for the taking.

"The fact that we get to rejuvenate our midfield on the back of a couple of list changes as well as injecting some real talent and experience in Greg - I think it's going to be super exciting. It's going to be so new for me," Marinoff said.

Marinoff played more than 100 games alongside Hatchard and admits that it will feel strange lining up against her former teammate.

"Yeah, obviously it's hard when it happens," Marinoff said.

"From a personal level I said to Hatch, ‘You've got to absolutely do what's best for yourself.’ She had a baby along the way, she's got her beautiful wife G', and yeah, you wish her all the best.

"But from a footy and a teammate point of view, like I just said to her, ‘Look, I'm going to miss you so much. Like I've absolutely loved playing with you.'

"I've had the career that I've had because of 'Hatch'. We've been so lucky to have each other. But, yeah, she's a Gold Coast Sun now and that would be really weird seeing her in those colours, but that's footy."

For Egan, the move to Adelaide represents a fresh start for the 25-year-old after a challenging end to the 2025 season.

The former Tiger, who finished equal fifth in Richmond's best and fairest, was shocked when she was informed she wouldn't be offered a new contract.

"Going into the end of the season, I kind of just had a gut feeling something was happening, but I didn't obviously expect what happened to happen," Egan said.

"I thought maybe something else or just offered a different contract. But yeah, going into my exit meeting was pretty tough because just got in there and it was just a straight up, they (Richmond) weren't offering me another contract and would support me in looking elsewhere.

"That was pretty much the conversation and it wasn't anything more to it. So I think at that moment in time, it was obviously a massive shock to me."

Egan then began to weigh up her options, one of them being an opportunity to join the Crows.

Despite not knowing anyone at the club, the Crows quickly stood out.

"Adelaide definitely wasn't in my mind at all. I had actually never visited Adelaide," Egan said.

"I flew over to Adelaide for the day and then went for lunch with a few of the girls and stuff and not once did I feel like it was ever forced. I felt like there was actual care in me as a person.

"And the way they speak about footy. They're not happy enough with where they finished last season and the standards that they hold each other to is huge. Just their language around winning and being better.

"Once I left Adelaide that day, I actually couldn't even compare anywhere else to being here. Just the care and connection of the group and then also flow on from that, their language around standards, being elite and winning."

Another big change at the club has been the arrival of new coach Ryan Davis, who joined Adelaide from Brisbane.

Davis took over in December replacing long-time coach Matthew 'Doc' Clarke.

"He's a really big personality. He is just like a bundle of joy," Marinoff said.

"It is an adjustment for me, but it's a fun adjustment. Doc's very cool, calm and collected. Ryan is chaos, fun chaos. But then he's got a ruthless edge. Ruthless but chaotic."

With the changes has come a strong sense of excitement around the club.

"We've had lots of changes over the last three, four months, but it's been awesome," Marinoff said.

"It feels like it's good change. I'm certainly going to miss playing with the players that I did last year, but I'm kind of someone that lives presently in the moment.

"We've got some amazing characters that have come to the club. We've got six new faces - we haven't had that in a very long time."

Back at the Marinoff household, the star midfielder is proving just as valuable off the field as she is on it.

"This is probably the one thing that you could know about this house is 'Noffy' (Marinoff) is an amazing cook. She cooks dinner every night," Egan said.

"So, we don't have to cook dinner. But the rule is, Noffy cooks dinner for the house, so we clean."

If the connection on the field mirrors the one at the Marinoff household, the Crows are off to a good start.