Adelaide Crows coach Phil Walsh once spoke about the disconnect he had with his son and how he was working to fix it.

"One of the biggest things I've tried to change over the years, and I haven't been very good at, is taking work home," Walsh told Fairfax Media in an interview in February.

"I remember one year I snapped at my son over something and he said: 'Footy's started again has it, Dad?'

"That really rocked me," he said.

Four months after speaking those words, Walsh is dead and his son, Cy, in custody charged with murder.

Police allege Walsh, 55, was stabbed a number of times by his son during a domestic argument at their home in Somerton Park, South Australia, in the early hours of Friday.

He died at the house while his wife, Meredith, was taken to hospital with a leg wound.

At the start of the AFL season, Walsh reflected on his errors and regrets - again, about his family.

"I never spoke at my mother's funeral. I didn't feel I could do it and it's one of my great regrets.

"Later I spoke at my father's funeral and I didn't want to feel I hadn't done the right thing for anyone who meant something to me."

In an April interview with News Corp, Walsh said it was "a really hard question" to answer on whether he was a good father, and spoke about trying to reconnect with his son.

"The bonus of me taking the Crows job is my son is 26 and my daughter is 22, so the collateral damage isn't so big," Walsh said.

"But have I been a good father? To my son, I had a disconnect because of footy.

"I just immersed myself, got consumed and was selfish with as much time I committed to footy. I'm basically talking about my 10 years at Port Adelaide, just the desperation to win a premiership and I thought it was all about me, when it's all about the players.

"I lost that connection and I'm trying to reconnect with my son, which I have done.

"In a selfish way, I taught my daughter to surf, and that's my release, so when I go surfing, I take her. Now I've got my son into it as well and that's what I should've done a long time ago.

Cy Walsh is expected to undergo a psychiatric assessment in hospital and to face a bedside hearing on Friday afternoon.

The Adelaide Football Club released a short statement soon after, saying it was devastated by Walsh's death.

"The Adelaide Football Club is devastated at the sudden passing of senior coach Phil Walsh in the early hours of this morning," the club said.

"We ask if you could please respect the privacy of his family, as well as our players, coaches and staff, at this extremely difficult time."