After the Crows kicked three of the first four goals, The Bulldogs took control with six of the last eight goals of the first quarter, and then Grant stepped up with five consecutive goals to stretch the margin to a comfortable 34 points at the long break.
Adelaide tried hard in both the third and last quarters to fight their way back into the contest, but on each occasion the Bulldogs were able to repel the challenge and eventually ran out easy winners.
Scott West knocked up getting the ball as he does almost every week for the Dogs, with great support from Brad Johnson, Tony Liberatore and Rohan Smith, while Luke Darcy dominated around the ground and Grant kicked his six goals and Matthew Croft and Paul Hudson three each.
“We came over here confidently, and in these conditions, tight conditions, we’ve prevailed,” Grant said. “We came over here pretty confident and we’ve prevailed. This week was a test of character and the guys have come through.”
Andrew McLeod, Ben Hart and Kane Johnson were the best players for the Crows, with Matthew Clarke winning 34 hitouts, while Tyson Edwards and Mark Stevens kicked three goals each.
Daniel Giansiracusa bounced through a goal with his first kick in the AFL, but the Crows kicked the next three through Edwards (two goals) and Bryan Beinke.
The Dogs hit back with the next four courtesy of Grant, Croft (two goals) and Smith, before Ben Marsh added two more in a minute for Adelaide, the first from a 50m penalty and the second off the ground from a tight angle to level the scores.
But Croft brilliantly met the ball from a Smith long bomb for his third, and Adam Contessa marked a stray defensive kick as the Bulldogs went to quarter time 13 points clear, 7.4.46 to 5.3.33.
In the first term both teams suffered injuries as well, with high-flying Crow Brett Burton grounded with an ankle injury early and Bulldog Ben Harrison hurting his ribs just before the siren.
Adelaide got the first of the second term through a strong two-grab mark to Beinke, before Grant unleashed a brilliant burst that saw him kick the next five goals as the Dogs stretched their lead to 40 points.
He got the first on the run, a second from a tight angle, third from a poor free that should have been paid the other way, the fourth from the goal square after a defensive mistake and his sixth of the night from a mark 45m out.
Scott Welsh took a strong mark in the goal square and kicked truly to break the run of five straight to the Dogs, as they led by 34 points at half-time, 12.8.80 to 7.4.46.
Peter Vardy managed the first goal of the second half, but after the Crows wasted several more chances with three behinds, Hudson kicked his 200th six-pointer for the Bulldogs, the former Hawk becoming just the fourth player after Tony Lockett, Bernie Quinlan and Doug Wade to do so at two different clubs.
But the Crows got a late goal after the siren through Stevens, the ball just clearing a pack of players on the line, as the Dogs led by 28 points at three-quarter time, 13.12.90 to 9.8.62.
McLeod got an early one to give Adelaide fans some hope, before a couple to Giansiracusa and Hudson stretched the margin to more than six goals.
From there Stevens added two more, and Welsh and Edwards slotted goals as well, while Nathan Brown bobbed up with a couple after a very quiet game by his recent standards, and Smith added another late as the Bulldogs finished the game off strongly.
Scoreboard:
ADELAIDE CROWS: 5.3 7.4 9.8 14.13 (97)
WESTERN BULLDOGS: 7.4 12.8 13.12 19.13 (127)
Goals: Western Bulldogs: C Grant 6 M Croft 3 P Hudson 3 D
Giansiracusa 2 N Brown 2 R Smith 2 A Contessa. Adelaide: M Stevens
3 T Edwards 3 B Beinke 2 B Marsh 2 S Welsh 2 A McLeod P Vardy
Best: Western Bulldogs: C Grant S West T Liberatore L Darcy R Smith B Johnson. Adelaide: A McLeod N Smart T Edwards M Stevens K Johnson M Bickley.
Injuries: Western Bulldogs: B Harrison (hip). Adelaide: B Burton
(ankle)
Reports: nil
Umpires: H Kennedy B Rosebury J Schmitt
Crowd: 38,829 at Football Park
