AFL Gather Round Adelaide v Geelong: Matthew Nicks on the Crows’ final quarter fade out
Did the five-day break hurt the Crows on Thursday night? Matthew Nicks isn’t hiding behind his side’s preparation, instead highlighting where it all went wrong.
AFL
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks said poor decision-making and costly execution errors, not his side’s five-day break, were to blame for the Crows’ disappointing fade out against Geelong.
Nicks’ men led by as much as 30 points on Thursday night, but were mown down by the surging Cats, who booted the first four goals of the last quarter at Adelaide Oval to set up a 19-point win.
Adelaide was coming off a controversial one-point loss in warm conditions away against Gold Coast, while Geelong enjoyed an extra day of rest following a home win against Melbourne.
But after his charges imploded late against the Cats, Nicks refused to hide behind his side’s preparation.
DEEP DIVE: THE RED-TIME RAMPAGE THAT WILL HAUNT CROWS
“Our guys did a great job during the week and we were up and going,” Nicks said.
“We got a lot wrong in that last quarter, just some decision-making, our execution, it was really uncharacteristic of us.
“It wasn’t us.
“So, it’s going to be a hard one for us to go through.
“But when you play teams like Geelong, if you make a mistake, you will be punished and they did that to us.
“I thought for three quarters it was a really good game of footy, but I didn’t enjoy the last quarter at all.
“We played some of our best footy in the first three quarters and then we really just got it wrong in that last one.”
The Crows conceded their highest score of the season in the loss and Nicks admitted his vaunted ‘three-headed monster’ tall forward line was unable to keep the ball inside attacking 50 against Geelong.
“At the moment we’re not really keeping the ball in our front half, so we’re spending a bit of time under pressure and then there’s an execution piece to that as well when the game is not necessarily going our way we seem to make more poor decisions and/or execution,” he said.
“We turned the ball over in some spots where it’s just undefendable, so (conceding) 100-plus points . that’s a real work-on for us.
“(Our forward line structure) can cost us at times, but other times it stays in there and we score so there is a balance with that.
“If we don’t deliver the ball the way that we need to it can cost us.
“We’ll keep backing that in, but there’s too many other areas … it was mistakes in places where, good luck, a turnover 50m from goal you’re not stopping that very often.”
Star midfielder Izak Rankine was touch and go to play with a sore calf, but he was one of his side’s better players in the first three quarters and Nicks reported he was moving unhindered in the changerooms after the match.
Match report: Crows crumble in Gather Round boilover
A four-goal blast by former favourite son Patrick Dangerfield spoiled Adelaide’s Gather Round party as a gutsy Geelong stormed home to score a stunning come-from-behind win on Thursday night.
Bailey Smith and Max Holmes were also outstanding as the Cats soaked up the early pressure then slammed on the first four goals of the final term to set up the impressive 19-point win.
The Cats trailed by as much as 30 points in the second quarter, but refused to succumb, launching a furious fightback either side of the half-time break and took the lead after Ollie Dempsey soared high midway through the third quarter and goaled from close range.
The visitors trailed by eight points at the last change, but hit the front for good with back-to-back goals to Jeremy Cameron, who also booted four, with Dangerfield adding his third and fourth to break the home fans’ hearts.
Danger has FOUR 🔥
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) April 10, 2025
The Cats pressure has been ELITE
📺Watch #AFLCrowsCats on ch.504 or on @kayosportshttps://t.co/4aQ9KanzYo
âœï¸ BLOG https://t.co/W0PEecYTZM
🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/V53LprMV3Epic.twitter.com/L9KlhpEGhr
TEX FLEX
A fortnight out from his 35th birthday, Taylor Walker turned back the clock with a stunning goal to open proceedings.
With fans still settling into their seats, Tex deftly gathered a James Peatling pass on the bounce just inside 50, sent Mark Blicavs the wrong way with a brilliant baulk, stiff-armed the hapless defender, then turned on the afterburners and snapped a brilliant running goal off his left boot.
Walker turned provider when he handballed onto Izak Rankine’s boot for another goal and effortlessly stroked home his second from 55m in the second term.
FOG’S FOUR
With Tom Stewart a late out with illness and Jack Henry hamstrung, the Cats’ defence was undermanned, and Darcy Fogarty took full advantage in a blistering second quarter.
The imposing forward banged through four goals in a superb display.
In free play from close range or from set shots out by the 50m arc, it didn’t matter, Fogarty couldn’t miss.
Ben Keays chimed in with three goals for the first half, but the persistent Cats, led by Smith with a game-high 17 first-half touches, kept chipping away.
PLEASE EXPLAIN?
A week after the AFL came out and admitted the umpires got it wrong in not paying a mark or a free kick to Rankine in a one-point loss to Gold Coast, the umpires earned the wrath of Crows fans once again.
Lachie Sholl appeared to clearly get first hands to a ball deep inside his defensive 50 in the second quarter, but he and his teammates were stunned to see Dempsey, playing behind, awarded a mark.
With the boos raining down from the stands, Dempsey rubbed salt into the wounds with a neat goal from a tight angle.
Man in front? 🤔
— Fox Footy (@FOXFOOTY) April 10, 2025
📺Watch #AFLCrowsCats on ch.504 or on @kayosportshttps://t.co/4aQ9KanzYo
âœï¸ BLOG https://t.co/W0PEecYTZM
🔢 MATCH CENTRE https://t.co/V53LprMV3Epic.twitter.com/dNAZzEXX6B
“They already feel hard done by the umps over the last 10 years and this is not helping,” David King said on Fox Footy.
“There will be another ‘please explain’ from the Crows during the week to the AFL. You’ve got to pay the man in front … it was a mark (to Sholl) or at least touched at bare minimum.”
The mood of home fans didn’t improve late in the term, with the resurgent visitors booting four of the last five goals of the half to slice a 30-point deficit to just 12 at the main break.
Holmes goaled from the centre square 17 seconds into the third quarter and Brad Close soccered through the next to make it six of the last seven goals to make it a one-point game.
PEATLING PINGED
Peatling faces a nervous wait to see how his tackle on Oisin Mullin is assessed.
The former Giant conceded a free kick in the first quarter when he took the Cat to ground with a slinging motion.
SCOREBOARD
CROWS 5.3 11.6 14.10 15.10 (100)
CATS 4.4 9.6 13.8 18.11 (119)
PHELAN’S BEST
CROWS: Rankine, Fogarty, Keays, Milera, Keane, Peatling, Laird.
CATS: Dangerfield, Smith, Holmes, Dempsey, Cameron, Guthrie, Atkins.
GOALS
CROWS: Fogarty 4, Keays 3, Walker 2, Rankine 2, Thilthorpe, Taylor, Draper, Curtin.
CATS: Dangerfield 4, Cameron 4, Dempsey 2, Close 2, Smith, Neale, Holmes, Henry, Guthrie, Bowes.
INJURIES
CROWS: Nil.
CATS: Stewart (illness – late withdrawal).
UMPIRES
Foot, Deboy, Hosking, Findlay.
CROWD: 50,073 at the Adelaide Oval
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: JASON PHELAN’S VOTES
3 Dangerfield (Geel)
2 Smith (Geel)
1 Rankine (Adel)
Triple treat for SuperCoaches as DPPs locked in
The game is about to change. SuperCoaches have been given a triple treat of forward premiums, while plenty of rookies have also found another home. See the full DPP list.
The Ambush at Adelaide: Power adds new spice to rivalry
Hawthorn came into Sunday’s clash ready to make a statement – both to the competition and to their hated Port Adelaide rivals. However, they were completely ambushed by Port Adelaide.