HAD IT been another week, at another point of Adelaide's season, the Crows probably wouldn't have beaten Collingwood. The fact they did, according to forward Josh Jenkins, shows a growth in the side.

The Crows were the dominant side at the MCG on Sunday, and could have sealed the game much earlier than they did had they kicked more accurately.

But when Collingwood stormed back to take the lead at the start of the last quarter on the back of stars Dayne Beams and Travis Cloke, another Crows outfit might have let them have it

Not this one, who returned fire to win by 16 points and claim a top-eight position.

"It's very satisfying because we've had games like that and we've been run over. Even early on when we were having some big losses, we'd hit the front at times in the third or fourth quarter, we'd get challenged and then we'd roll over a little bit," Jenkins said after the win.

"They hit the front pretty early in the quarter, we knew we were going to get our run at it, and thankfully we were able to put a few on the board.

"We had the belief that we were the better side, we just had to get our hands on the ball, get it into our forward line and create a bit of havoc.

"Both sides were in the same position, they needed it as much as we did, and thankfully on the road, at a venue we haven't had a lot of success at recently, we were able to get the job done."

Part of Adelaide's early dominance was built on its unpredictable, slightly unique forward set up.

Taylor Walker was busy and finished with three goals, while James Podsiadly kicked one goal but created a couple of others through contesting hard, creating a spillage, or passing another off. Eddie Betts also chipped in for two goals.

Jenkins didn't have a big impact on the game but had kicked 34 goals for the season, and feels the Crows' attacking mix is about right. 

"Week-by-week we feel like we've gotten better. We've had a block of six-to-eight weeks where as a group we've been able to get the job done," he said.

"Tonight wasn't my night, but 'Tex' (Walker) got three and 'Pods' had plenty of shots, and Eddie got a couple early. It wasn't a high-scoring match but we were able to contribute.

"That's the thing – everyone gets their turn. Most sides don't have enough defensive power to close everyone down.