Two former Blues starred for Adelaide at the MCG on Sunday night.

Dangerous forward Eddie Betts equalled his best return as a Crow, slotting 4.1 in his first match against Carlton. Betts also laid four tackles, including one on ex-teammate Zac Tuohy to set up his first goal of the match in the second quarter.

Ruckman Sam Jacobs continued his stellar 2014 season. For the fourth time this season, Jacobs racked up in excess of 20 disposals (23). Playing a lone hand in the ruck, the South Australian won 38 hit-outs and sent the ball inside Adelaide’s attacking 50m on six occasions. He’s averaging more disposals (18.3) than any other ruckman in the AFL and is ranked fourth at Adelaide for score involvements.

Small utility Rory Laird played one of the best games of his short career on Sunday. Laird collected 28 possessions, won two clearances and took a team-high 10 marks, including several timely grabs in defence.

Acting co-captain Patrick Dangerfield did his best to inspire the Crows. Opposed to Carlton stopper Dennis Armfield, Dangerfield overcame several heavy knocks to amass 25 possessions including a game-high 25 contested. He also won a game-high 11 clearances – twice as many as the next-best clearance winner (five).

Veteran Scott Thompson topped Adelaide’s possession count. Thompson racked up 30 disposals including 14 contested. He also laid five tackles, won four clearances, four inside 50ms and kicked 1.1.

Full-back Daniel Talia kept a clean sheet for the second time in three weeks. Talia limited Carlton forward Lachie Henderson to a mere six possessions. Richard Douglas worked hard to generate a team-high seven inside 50ms from his 27 disposals. Douglas also won five clearances and laid four tackles.

The Crows won a number of the key statistical areas, including but their efficiency let them down. Adelaide kicked at just 57.9 per cent efficiency on Sunday – the worst in the League in Round 10. This included a wasteful 10.16 on the scoreboard.

Match statistics
Disposals
Adelaide – 368
Carlton – 374

Kicks
Adelaide – 195
Carlton – 225

Handballs
Adelaide – 173
Carlton – 149

Free Kicks
Adelaide – 14
Carlton – 18

Clearances
Adelaide – 37
Carlton – 33

Inside 50ms
Adelaide – 54
Carlton – 50

Contested Possessions
Adelaide – 141
Carlton – 133

Tackles
Adelaide – 59
Carlton – 60

Hit-outs
Adelaide – 41
Carlton – 36

Interchanges
Adelaide – 119
Carlton – 110