Adelaide has had its six-game winning streak snapped, losing by 19 points to Norwood at Norwood Oval on Saturday afternoon.
After trailing for most of the first half the Crows bounced back in the third term, however were unable to maintain the momentum, going down 15.3 (93) to 10.14 (74).
Here are the five key takeaways.
Exceptional Sholl
Wingman Lachlan Sholl continued his strong form with another impressive outing against the Redlegs where his outside run and carry was an asset for Adelaide.
Sholl covered the ground well and was able to hit the scoreboard on multiple occasion thanks to his high work rate.
“He’s been exceptional,” Godden said.
“Hopefully he can continue to improve in the offseason and play more AFL in the future because his level is very high.”
Sholl finished with 26 disposals, 13 marks, four tackles and kicked two goals.
Nankervis’ strong ball use
Defender Luke Nankervis was one of Adelaide’s best ball users throughout the afternoon, showcasing his ability to be composed with ball in hand and to find a teammate.
Nankervis rarely wasted a possession, also playing an important part in linking up the play and chaining handballs together to get the Crows moving forward.
“It took him a little bit to adjust early but I thought as the game got going he got better,” Godden said.
“We played him in a few different roles to see what the mix would look like next week and I was really pleased with what he did today.”
Nankervis finished with a team-high 31 disposals, nine marks – three contested – and seven rebound 50s.
Dowling delivers
Midfielder Billy Dowling backed up an impressive month of footy with another strong performance.
Dowling had a complete game through the middle of the park, able to impact in multiple ways, both on the inside and outside.
“He’s a first year league footballer and to be playing that type of footy is special,” Godden said
“Today I thought was a culmination of many weeks of work for him and he is going to be a really strong contributor going forward for this footy club and particularly in the finals.”
Dowling finished with 28 disposals, a team-high 10 tackles, team-high eight clearances and seven inside 50s.
New role for Cook
Brayden Cook showed his ability to impact closer to goal with the coaches opting to give him more minutes across the half forward line against Norwood.
The move proved successful with Cook able to hit the scoreboard, booting two goals along with being a strong marking target.
“He played more forward today which was a different role for him,” Godden said.
“I thought he looked really impressive across half forward.”
Cook finished with 16 disposals, seven marks, four tackles and four inside 50s.
Third term fight back
Adelaide flipped the momentum in its favour in the third quarter turning around a 17 point halftime deficit to lead by 22 points at three quarter time.
The Crows dominated time in forward half and were clean with their ball movement which resulted in them outscoring Norwood, 39 to zero following six unanswered majors.
While Adelaide would ultimately be unable to maintain the lead in the final term, SANFL Head Coach Michael Godden was proud of how his side went about it.
“That third quarter I thought we were excellent,” he said.
“We just dropped off for that last 10 minutes of the game where they got a few junk time goals.”
Having finished third on the ladder Adelaide will now begin its SANFL Finals campaign against Sturt next Sunday at Adelaide Oval with the first bounce at 3:15pm.
ADELAIDE: 2.4 4.8 10.11 10.14 (74)
NORWOOD: 5.1 8.1 8.1 15.3 (93)
GOALS
Adelaide: Cook, Sholl 2, Smithson, Hatley, McKenzie, Brown, Newchurch, Coleman
Norwood: Callow, Jarvis, Kennerley 3, Wilkins, McLean 2, Panos, Seymour
Bests:
Sholl, Dowling, Cook, Hately, Nankervis
