The Tigers pushed Adelaide for three quarters but the Crows kicked seven goals to nil in the final quarter to finish with a comfortable 21.12 (138) to 13.8 (86) win.
Crows fans would have been heartened by the potent forward combination of Ian Perrie, Trent Hentschel and Scott Welsh – each player finished with four goals apiece while Perrie also pulled down 14 marks.
Greg Tivendale worked tirelessly for the Tigers and gathered 26 disposals and nine marks while Tim Fleming also worked hard for his 22 touches.
Adelaide had the better of the early play but failed to capitalise on its momentum with Rhett Biglands missing a set shot from the goal square.
Richmond would rely heavily on star forward Matthew Richardson to pull off a win but it was the Tigers young guns that did the job in the first quarter.
Kelvin Moore opened the scoring in the fifth minute and his goal was quickly followed by majors to Jay Schulz and Luke Weller as Richmond opened up a 17-point lead with nine minutes gone.
Perrie was providing a strong target around half-forward and he capped off his solid early play with two goals for the term, helping Adelaide reduce the margin to 11 points at the first break.
Adelaide regained momentum as the second quarter got under way but continued to waste opportunities – this time Welsh was the main offender with consecutive behinds before Simon Goodwin kicked truly with six minutes played.
The Tigers had not been inside attacking 50 at the eight-minute mark but Fleming made the most of their first entry – slotting his first to extend the Richmond lead against the run of play.
Welsh got his radar working soon after - bagging his first for the day to draw Adelaide closer – and Tyson Stenglein gave his side the lead minutes later after taking a strong mark just inside 50.
Perrie continued his good work with a superb gather and snapped goal from 50 to turn up the heat on the Tigers but Richardson was equal to the challenge and scored his first in the shadows of half-time to snatch back the lead.
It was Adelaide by six points at the main break, however, as Trent Hentschel converted with a mongrel punt that went left, then right, then straight through the middle after the siren.
The Tigers came out firing after the restart with quick goals to Andrew Krakouer and David Rodan before Welsh received a 50-metre penalty and converted from the goal line.
The Crows were 15 points up when Luke Jericho slotted his second major for the term at the 26-minute mark but Richardson bobbed up for his second to send Richmond into the last break eight points down.
The open, even and entertaining affair quickly became a rout as the final term progressed with Welsh, Perrie and Hentschel all proving a handful for the Richmond defenders.
Welsh finished the scoring for the day with a neat little party trick goal with one hand pinned behind his back much to the delight of the home crowd.
Adelaide coach Neil Craig said his players lived up to expectations.
"It was always a game (that) we were expected to win and with that comes pressure but we stated during the week that we’re going to have to handle those sorts of pressures," he said.
"(It was) one goal to five at one stage during the first quarter so our ability to regroup and stay at the task was very pleasing from the players."
Richmond coach Danny Frawley said he thought his team started brightly.
"That’s never been an issue for us, we seem to come out of the blocks really well. In the end there, more class in the midfield was probably the difference," Frawley said.
"In the first half – probably right up to three-quarter time – we were probably playing just as much good footy as Adelaide.
"You probably saw two (sides) there early that didn’t have a lot of confidence, so in that respect they were always going to keep at it on their home ground and playing their first fully-fledged game under Neil (Craig)."
Adelaide: 3.2, 8.5, 14.8, 21.12 (138)
Richmond: 5.1, 7.5, 13.6, 13.8 (86)
Goals: Adelaide: Perrie 4, Welsh 4, Hentschel 4, Jericho 2, Ricciuto 2, Shirley, Stenglein, Goodwin, McLeod, S Stevens
Richmond: Weller 2, Schulz 2, Fleming 2, Richardson 2, Krakouer, Brown, Rodan, Moore, Blumfield
Best: Adelaide: Edwards, Perrie, Ricciuto, McLeod, Goodwin, Hentschel, Welsh, Clarke
Richmond: Tivendale, Fleming, Zantuck, Bowden
Injuries: Adelaide: Nil
Richmond: Nil
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Head, Hendrie, Nicholls
Crowd: 35,896 at AAMI Stadium
