Round One v North Melbourne, Adelaide Oval
Under a new coach, captain and CEO, Adelaide’s season began with a bang on home turf against North Melbourne, with the Crows demolishing the Kangaroos by 77 points on Easter Sunday.
Taylor Walker led the way impeccably in his first game as skipper. He collected 22 touches, took 15 marks and even forced Roos coach Brad Scott to sub his direct opponent Joel Tippett at half-time such was Tex’s dominance.
Walker finished with six goals against the 2014 Preliminary Finalists – his biggest haul at Adelaide Oval – but lost his guernsey in memorable fashion upon slotting his half-dozen at the Southern end.
Eddie Betts bagged four goals of his own, while fellow forward Josh Jenkins chimed in with three majors.
Rory Sloane and Patrick Dangerfield were Adelaide’s other multiple goalkickers, with the latter earning an AFL Goal of the Year nomination for his stunning left-foot effort late in the contest.
ADELAIDE 6.4 12.10 15.12 21.14 (140)
NORTH MELBOURNE 2.1 3.1 9.4 9.9 (63)
BEST: Walker, Dangerfield, Sloane, Douglas, Laird, Betts, Cheney
GOALS: Walker 6, Betts 4, Jenkins 3, Sloane 2, Dangerfield 2, Smith, Laird, Lynch, Cameron
Taylor Walker towers over North Melbourne's Scott Thompson after booting goal No.6
Round Two v Collingwood, MCG
Adelaide’s strong start to the year continued with a convincing 27-point win over Collingwood at Etihad Stadium in Round Two.
The Crows held the home side goalless in the opening quarter and looked set for a big victory after building a 56-point buffer by the final break.
But inaccurate finishing and a scary concussion to playmaker Brodie Smith in the fourth quarter dampened Adelaide’s celebrations. Smith was stretchered from the field after sustaining an accidental knee to the head while tackled.
Eddie Betts added another boundary blinder to his growing highlight reel. Ricky Henderson rediscovered his best form down back, while Patrick Dangerfield and Rory Sloane were again among Adelaide’s best.
ADELAIDE 3.6 7.11 11.15 12.18 (90)
COLLINGWOOD 0.2 2.4 3.7 9.9 (63)
BEST: Smith, Henderson, Dangerfield, Talia, Jaensch, Jacobs, Sloane
GOALS: Lynch 2, Walker 2, Dangerfield 2, Betts, Smith, Douglas, van Berlo, Cameron, Jenkins
Round Three v Melbourne, Adelaide Oval
It was wet and wild encounter at Adelaide Oval in Round Three as the Crows held off a dogged Demons outfit by 25 points to bank the Club’s third straight win.
Three goals to captain Taylor Walker proved the difference in trying conditions, with two incredible majors from young Crow Cam Ellis-Yolmen also important in the final result.
The dynamic midfielder set sail from outside 50m after winning a centre clearance for his first, then nailed an unlikely goal from the boundary late in the piece to see off the Demons’ charge.
Former rookie Jake Kelly made his AFL debut for Adelaide in the rain-soaked clash. The competitive defender was not overawed in his maiden showing and finished with 10 tackles and three marks in a promising first-up display.
Patrick Dangerfield was closely tagged by former teammate Bernie Vince all afternoon, prompting an all-in melee between the two teams at three-quarter time. But it was the Crows who had the last laugh, with Adelaide one of just three sides to stay undefeated through three rounds.
ADELAIDE 3.1 5.3 9.4 12.7 (80)
MELBOURNE 3.4 4.6 6.9 7.13 (55)
BEST: Sloane, Mackay, Thompson, Jacobs, Douglas, Talia
GOALS: Walker 3, Ellis-Yolmen 2, Cameron, Lynch, Jenkins, Mackay, Smith, Brown, Betts
Rory Sloane remonstrates with former Crow Bernie Vince at three-quarter time
Round Four v Western Bulldogs, Etihad Stadium
Adelaide’s winning streak came to a screeching halt at Etihad Stadium against a much-improved Western Bulldogs outfit in Round Four.
The Crows failed to fire a shot from the outset, trailing the fleet-footed Dogs by 34 points by the first break with the final margin blowing out to 57 points in Adelaide’s maiden loss of the season.
Jake Stringer did the damage for the Dogs with six goals. Eddie Betts was The Crows’ most dangerous forward, slotting three majors in the final term out of his four for the afternoon.
Sam Jacobs dominated in the ruck with 43 hit-outs and helped the Crows to a decisive 43-34 advantage in clearances, but it was to no avail, with the Bulldogs showing up Adelaide in all other key areas in what was Phil Walsh’s first loss at the helm as Senior Coach.
ADELAIDE 1.1 5.4 5.5 10.8 (68)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 6.5 10.9 16.14 18.17 (125)
BEST: Thompson, Ellis-Yolmen, Betts, Jaensch, Jacobs
GOALS: Betts 4, Dangerfield 2, Thompson, Walker, Henderson, Jenkins
Round Five v Port Adelaide, Adelaide Oval
Wasted opportunities cost the Crows dearly in Showdown XXXVIII as Adelaide succumbed to Port Adelaide by 24 points in Round Five.
Adelaide slipped to seventh spot on the AFL ladder on the back of its second consecutive loss despite dominating inside 50ms (71-42) and having one more scoring shot than the Power in the twilight shootout at Adelaide Oval.
Eddie Betts’ incredible start to the year continued with another five-goal haul and Scott Thompson snapped two miraculous final-quarter goals at the Northern end to give the Crows some hope in the latter stages of the contest.
But the lead remained at an arm’s reach for Adelaide as the Power extended its Showdown record to 21-17 in front of almost 50,000 fans.
Port’s Robbie Gray earned the Showdown Medal as best afield.
ADELAIDE 2.3 4.8 9.11 13.13 (91)
PORT ADELAIDE 5.1 8.1 12.6 18.7 (115)
BEST: Betts, Dangerfield, Thompson, Ellis-Yolmen, Lynch
GOALS: Betts 5, Walker 2, Jenkins 2, Thompson 2, Lynch 2
Eddie Betts bagged five goals in a losing side against Port Adelaide in Round Five
