Early this month, the Adelaide Crows Facebook page ran a competition asking fans which game was their all-time favourite.
After surveying nearly 500 comments shortly after the competition ended, one game narrowly stood out:
61 people (12 per cent) selected the Crows’ Preliminary final victory over Geelong in 2017.
It was the game that landed the Crows in the Grand Final for the first time in 19 years, with Adelaide marching to a 61-point win at Adelaide Oval in front of 53,817 fans.
“My son and I drove three hours to watch that game,” one Facebook user said.
“Atmosphere was electrifying and the fact we thumped them was worth the trip.
“We smiled for days and days.”
Aside from the 2017 prelim, plenty of other games sprung to mine for Facebook users:
The Grand Finals combined attracted nearly 100 votes (47 for the 1997 match and 39 for 1998).
But runner-up in the race wasn’t a Grand Final… it was another preliminary.
In 1997, Adelaide defeated the Western Bulldogs by two points in front of 70,000 fans at the MCG - and 50 Facebook fans still call it their favourite match.
Ben Hart was the standout player on the day with 26 disposals, seven marks and four tackles and Darren Jarman booted three goals to steer the Crows home - including the winning goal.
Showdowns featured heavily across the comments, none more so than Round 16, 2015, otherwise known as the Phil Walsh Showdown.
The cross-town rivalry equated for 38 selections with the Phil Walsh match claiming 15 picks.
The remaining selections on Facebook were scattered but did include:
- The AFLW Grand Final wins
- 300 game milestones for players
- Round Nine, 2014 - Adelaide v Collingwood (the siren too loud)
