1. The concussion curse
A sickening incident late in the first quarter left St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt and Adelaide midfielder Brodie Smith badly concussed. Smith received a handball from Scott Thompson, was immediately met by a Riewoldt tackle and the pair clashed heads on impact. Smith was able to be walked off the ground but Riewoldt had to be taken to hospital. It's the second time Smith has been concussed this season and in that instance he played the following week. It would be surprising if he wasn't given a one-game rest this time around. Earlier in the quarter, Saints youngster Jack Lonie was also subbed out with concussion after a collision with Crow Jake Lever. It meant St Kilda had just two on the bench for the final three quarters of the match.
2. Crows' forward cooking with gas
Adelaide's forward line was firing on all cylinders at their home ground on Saturday afternoon. It was led by pocket-dynamo Eddie Betts who continued his scintillating form with six goals. With every game he plays, Betts is proving he was worth the money Carlton weren't willing to pay. His ability to find space, take contested marks and his lethal finishing are why he's now leading the Coleman Medal by three goals. Second-year player Charlie Cameron (three goals) is moulding into a Betts clone, Tom Lynch (three goals) is showing how much his injury hurt the Crows last year and skipper Taylor Walker (three goals) set up a number of crucial goals when the game was on the line. This performance was also without Josh Jenkins, who is on the sidelines with a hip injury.
3. Brilliant Bruce
Josh Bruce has proved a revelation up forward for St Kilda in 2015 and after Nick Riewoldt went off with concussion, Bruce was the only real effective target for the Saints. He pulled down 12 marks (five contested) was extremely efficient in front of the big sticks with 5.1. It looked like he was going to lift St Kilda back into the game in the last quarter before Adelaide ran away with the match. The Saints were wasteful at times in front of goal and also with their inside 50s - they had four more entries than the Crows.
4. Adelaide's depth to be tested
The Crows' depth was already being tested before this match but it will be pushed to the limit away from home against GWS in round eight. Matthew Jaensch looked to have ruptured his ACL in the third quarter and Brodie Smith will be an unlikely starter after again suffering concussion. Already on the sidelines are Rory Sloane (cheekbone), Brad Crouch (broken foot), Richard Douglas (foot), Josh Jenkins (hip) and Cam Ellis-Yolmen (hamstring). On top of those players are Andy Otten (a long-term knee injury), James Podsiadly (back) and Sam Shaw (hamstring) who are all defenders. Jenkins and Ellis-Yolmen are good chances to be back next week and Sam Kerridge is knocking on the door but Smith and Jaensch are hard to replace down back. It makes it a tough task next week against a young Giants team playing to their potential.
5. Radar's warm reception
Adelaide veteran Brent Reilly received a standing ovation as he was given a lap of honour after retiring with 203 AFL games to his name. Reilly suffered a fractured skull in a sickening training incident in February and has made huge strides in his recovery back to full health. The 31-year-old was drafted with pick No.12 in the 2001 NAB AFL Draft was crucial to the Crows defence in his career. His damaging kicking and his ability to float back and take intercept marks were his trademarks. He's just the 13th Adelaide player to play 200 games and will become a life member of the club. Reilly has already made a move into the coaches' box, helping Darren Milburn in defence.
