birdmanptr
Norm Smith Medallist
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Craig's Crows proving a class apart
Rohan Connolly
July 3, 2006
SEVERAL higher scores have been kicked this season, and bigger winning margins racked up than Adelaide's 92-point demolition of Geelong yesterday, even by the Crows themselves.
But if any team turns on a more complete performance than Adelaide produced yesterday, we might as well hand it the premiership cup there and then.
As good as a handful of rivals have been at stages this season, right now, the Crows are playing football of a higher order, certainly the best the AFL has seen since the peak of the Brisbane Lions' dominance in 2002.
Adelaide is in a different class to even its nearest contenders, and yesterday's win emphasised just why, most notably because of the calibre of the opposition.
As strange as it sounds given the result, Geelong started a game critical to its season very competitively. The Cats were hard and committed, won enough of the ball, and until midway through the second term, were going goal for goal.
It would have left them well placed going into half-time against any other side in the competition. Instead, they trudged from AAMI Stadium 43 points in arrears, any prospect of a revival similar to that of the NAB Cup grand final against the same team mere fantasy.
While West Coast was a team badly in need of the mid-season break, and didn't look a lot better for it against the Western Bulldogs yesterday, and Collingwood produced a second "shocker" in its past three outings, Adelaide went into and has emerged from its spell in peak form.
The Crows are 11-2 now, those losses by only two and three points, their percentage an almost unbelievable 171. As good as was their defence last season, they have conceded even fewer points to the same stage in 2006, and significantly, scored 253 more, upwards of three goals per game.
Neil Craig's side has clearly gone up another couple of gears since the start of this season, but that's about more than just numbers.
While the old hands Andrew McLeod, Mark Ricciuto, Simon Goodwin and Tyson Edwards were all terrific yesterday, a roll call of supposed lesser lights led the way when the game was broken open before half-time.
Martin Mattner was superb off half-back, by then having racked up 16 touches and five marks. Michael Doughty had 10 disposals for the term. Kris Massie, often maligned, had been a valuable contributor with 14 possessions. The athletic Trent Hentschel offered a dangerous marking target and a ground-level option up forward, and Jason Porplyzia, in only his fourth game, was a revelation with six strong marks, two goals and a couple more assists.
The potency of Adelaide's forward set-up was the biggest question mark over last year's Crows. It is no longer an issue. Even without 2005's leading two goalkickers in Scott Welsh and Ian Perrie, the Crows had 42 shots at goal yesterday, Ricciuto and Brett Burton sharing 10 majors.
Welsh and Perrie shared 97 goals last season, indispensable parts of the forward machinery. Now they are barely missed. Similarly, two more absentees from the other end of the ground, Ben Hart and Nathan Bock. Adelaide, it seems, has answers for everything.
Just ask the Cats, who gave what seemed an achievable mission a pretty fair crack but emerged with a near-100-point belting, shedding a critical eight percentage points in the process, and are now two games outside the eight.
September without Geelong seemed a ludicrous prospect when the Cats won the night flag. But the way Adelaide is travelling, the whole finals series might be academic anyway.
Rohan Connolly
July 3, 2006
SEVERAL higher scores have been kicked this season, and bigger winning margins racked up than Adelaide's 92-point demolition of Geelong yesterday, even by the Crows themselves.
But if any team turns on a more complete performance than Adelaide produced yesterday, we might as well hand it the premiership cup there and then.
As good as a handful of rivals have been at stages this season, right now, the Crows are playing football of a higher order, certainly the best the AFL has seen since the peak of the Brisbane Lions' dominance in 2002.
Adelaide is in a different class to even its nearest contenders, and yesterday's win emphasised just why, most notably because of the calibre of the opposition.
As strange as it sounds given the result, Geelong started a game critical to its season very competitively. The Cats were hard and committed, won enough of the ball, and until midway through the second term, were going goal for goal.
It would have left them well placed going into half-time against any other side in the competition. Instead, they trudged from AAMI Stadium 43 points in arrears, any prospect of a revival similar to that of the NAB Cup grand final against the same team mere fantasy.
While West Coast was a team badly in need of the mid-season break, and didn't look a lot better for it against the Western Bulldogs yesterday, and Collingwood produced a second "shocker" in its past three outings, Adelaide went into and has emerged from its spell in peak form.
The Crows are 11-2 now, those losses by only two and three points, their percentage an almost unbelievable 171. As good as was their defence last season, they have conceded even fewer points to the same stage in 2006, and significantly, scored 253 more, upwards of three goals per game.
Neil Craig's side has clearly gone up another couple of gears since the start of this season, but that's about more than just numbers.
While the old hands Andrew McLeod, Mark Ricciuto, Simon Goodwin and Tyson Edwards were all terrific yesterday, a roll call of supposed lesser lights led the way when the game was broken open before half-time.
Martin Mattner was superb off half-back, by then having racked up 16 touches and five marks. Michael Doughty had 10 disposals for the term. Kris Massie, often maligned, had been a valuable contributor with 14 possessions. The athletic Trent Hentschel offered a dangerous marking target and a ground-level option up forward, and Jason Porplyzia, in only his fourth game, was a revelation with six strong marks, two goals and a couple more assists.
The potency of Adelaide's forward set-up was the biggest question mark over last year's Crows. It is no longer an issue. Even without 2005's leading two goalkickers in Scott Welsh and Ian Perrie, the Crows had 42 shots at goal yesterday, Ricciuto and Brett Burton sharing 10 majors.
Welsh and Perrie shared 97 goals last season, indispensable parts of the forward machinery. Now they are barely missed. Similarly, two more absentees from the other end of the ground, Ben Hart and Nathan Bock. Adelaide, it seems, has answers for everything.
Just ask the Cats, who gave what seemed an achievable mission a pretty fair crack but emerged with a near-100-point belting, shedding a critical eight percentage points in the process, and are now two games outside the eight.
September without Geelong seemed a ludicrous prospect when the Cats won the night flag. But the way Adelaide is travelling, the whole finals series might be academic anyway.
