Adelaide fell to Sturt by 10 points at Unley Oval on Saturday afternoon.

Scores were all level heading into the final quarter, before Sturt proved clinical late to win 10.6 (66) to 8.8 (56).

Here are the five key takeaways.

Crows' midfield impresses Godden

Adelaide Senior Coach Michael Godden was impressed with how his midfield halted Sturt from scoring out of the stoppages.

Through the first five rounds of the SANFL season, Sturt has led the league in scoring from stoppages, an area Adelaide aimed to slow. 

“They (Sturt) are the number one midfield in the comp, they score 42 points a game from stoppage and we restricted them to 13 points,” Godden said.

“We can’t praise our mids enough for that effort, so I think as a collective it was a really strong effort from them.”

Midfielders Jackson Hately (10 tackles), Harry Schoenberg, Matt Crouch, (seven tackles) and Tyler Brown (six tackles) all played their part.

Cook rewarded for hard work

Wingman Brayden Cook gave Adelaide plenty of outside run against Sturt and also made an impact when he went forward.

Cook worked hard to get into dangerous positions in the Crows’ forward-50 and was rewarded for his efforts, kicking two goals.

“He came onto the scene pretty quickly when he was drafted and now, he has had to go to work on his game and he has continued to add to it,” Godden said.

“His of block work has been really good and today was a culmination of that.”

Cook capped a strong afternoon with 20 disposals, seven marks and five inside 50s.

Crouch leads with workrate

Midfielder Matt Crouch’s work rate was on full display throughout the afternoon, getting in and under to extract the ball and win clearances.

Crouch also worked hard defensively, putting the pressure on his opponent and forcing them into ineffective disposals.

“Matt was really good today and showed with his numbers,” Godden said.

“I thought as a collective the midfield did a pretty good job.”

Crouch amassed a game-high 31 disposals, seven tackles and 10 clearances.

Worrell big in defence

Defender Josh Worrell was an asset for Adelaide din defence, with his ability to read the play, intercept marking and spoiling being crucial against a fast-moving Sturt side.

Worrell cut off Sturt’s inside 50 entries, showing his composure under pressure.

“Josh has really impressed me in the last couple of years with his improvement with the way he is playing," Godden said.

“He’s a competitor, whatever level he plays at, he’s improving and today was enough great performance.”

Worrell recorded 23 disposals, nine marks and five rebound-50s.

Himmelberg solid in the ruck

Elliott Himmelberg played the second half as Adelaide’s main ruckman after Kieran Strachan came off injured late in the second quarter.

Himmelberg embraced the role, competing hard to lead the game in hit-outs, finishing with 28.

“It was a good opportunity for Elliott to show what he is capable of when he goes back to the next level,” Godden said.

“I was really pleased with Elliott, he had to ruck the whole second half on his own and I thought he did a really job considering it is not his primary position.”

Himmelberg finished with 10 disposals, 10 tackles and three clearances.

Round Seven of the SANFL season will be played in two weeks, following a League-wide bye for the State side’s clash with WA at Adelaide Oval.

Adelaide will next face Norwood at Norwood Oval on Friday, May 26 at 7.40pm.

ADELAIDE: 4.3  7.5  8.7  8.8 (56)

STURT: 4.1  7.1  9.1  10.6 (66)

GOALS

Adelaide: Madgen, Cook 2, Newchurch, Strachan, Dowling, Berry.

Sturt: Hone, Burrows 3, Doyle, Rentsch 2.

BEST

Adelaide: Cook, Crouch, Worrell, Hately.