The Adelaide Crows handed out a 73-point thrashing to the Melbourne Demons at AAMI Stadium on Sunday afternoon.
The Crows led all day and were never seriously challenged by the Dees - leading by 90 points midway through the last quarter before the Demons clawed back some consolation goals to finish 21.12 (138) to 10.5 (65).
Adelaide captain Mark Ricciuto and Brett Burton were the standouts for the home side with 24 and 29 disposals respectively and seven goals between them.
Ian Perrie had his best day in a Crows’ guernsey with seven marks and a career-best six goals.
It was all Adelaide early with Rhett Biglands doing well in the ruck contests and Ricciuto gathering 11 first-quarter disposals.
Perrie was outstanding at the goal-front – kicking four goals in the first 12 minutes and forcing David Neitz from attack to defence in an effort to curb his influence.
The Crows were quickly out to a four-goal lead before Brad Green booted the Demons’ first major to cut the deficit to three.
However, Burton chimed in with two late goals to give Adelaide an imposing 31-point lead at the first break.
The midfield run that had been a feature of the Crows’ game early dried up in the second term as Melbourne wrested back the momentum.
Green slotted his second at the seven-minute mark and Russell Robertson followed soon after to drag Melbourne back into the contest.
However, a Tyson Edwards mark and goal from a Travis Johnstone kick-in arrested the Dees’ momentum and a Ricciuto goal soon after gave Adelaide a 41-point lead at half-time.
The Crows looked to put the game out of the Demons’ reach early in the third with goals to Ricciuto, Chris Ladhams and Graham Johncock extending the lead to 57 points seven minutes into the quarter.
The situation looked grim for Melbourne before Johnstone chipped in with two goals in as many minutes to give his side some hope.
However, Adelaide rallied with three unanswered goals including Perrie’s sixth which came after a Neitz indiscretion led to a 50-metre penalty.
Melbourne was 53 points behind at the last break and Adelaide quickly went about increasing that margin.
Andrew McLeod – resting in a forward pocket – added his first major for the day in the first minute and Johncock added his third soon after to break the Demons’ spirit.
The Adelaide players appeared to be doing as they pleased as the margin ballooned out to 90 points when Ken McGregor goaled after a towering mark midway through the quarter.
With the sting gone out of the game Melbourne finished with three unanswered goals – including Green’s fourth - to add some sort of respectability to the scoreboard.
ADELAIDE: 6.2, 9.7, 15.10, 21.12 (138)
MELBOURNE: 1.1, 3.2, 7.5, 10.5 (65)
Goals: Adelaide: Perrie 6, Ricciuto 4, Johncock 3, Burton 3, Edwards, Ladhams, McLeod, Doughty, McGregor.
Melbourne: Green 4, Johnstone 2, Robertson, Neitz, Bruce, Walsh.
Best: Adelaide: Ricciuto, Burton, Perrie, Biglands, Edwards, Ladhams, Johncock.
Melbourne: Leoncelli, McDonald, Bizzell, Green, Thompson.
Crowd: 40,178
Injuries: Adelaide: McLeod (ankle)
Melbourne:
Reports: Nil.
Umpires: Kennedy, Schmitt, Avon.
At AAMI Stadium
