Crows show plenty of spirit in thrilling four-point win over Roosters

ADELAIDE’S reserves showed the type of character that is lacking in its senior team with a fighting four-point win over North Adelaide on Sunday.

Adelaide’s Matt Crouch congratulates Angus Graham after he kicked the winning goal against North Adelaide in the dying seconds of the match.

ADELAIDE’S reserves showed the type of character that is lacking in its senior team with a fighting four-point win over North Adelaide on Sunday to keep its season alive.

The lead changed four times in a pulsating final term when Angus Graham kicked a clutch goal from 25m on a tight angle with 29 minutes on the clock to steal victory.

“I think we can now start to call ourselves a team and a football club for the first time in the SANFL,” Crows coach Heath Younie said.

“In the first round here they smashed us by 45 points, we’ve grown as a group and today was another step forward.

“In the first three rounds it was a new club, a lot of players were coming to play for us after playing a lot of footy at other clubs, but I think now some of the senior guys are really driving the standards when they come back.”

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One of those players Younie was undoubtedly talking about was Matt Crouch, whose 35-disposal performance could well have booked him a spot in Adelaide’s side for the Showdown.

Crouch was enormous in the final 10 minutes and it was his forward entry that set up Graham’s game-winning goal.

The visitors were also forced to do it without Ricky Henderson after half time when he suffered a corked thigh in the second term and didn’t return.

The Roosters were left licking their wounds after squandering a seven-point final term lead which would have kept them in touch with the top five and effectively shut the door on Adelaide’s season.

North trailed at every change but kicked four consecutive goals in the last quarter and looked headed for victory. But then they simply stopped.

“I thought we started flat but I saw in the second and last quarter, the hunger and desire was there but we just didn’t do it well enough,” North coach Ken McGregor said.

“For the majority of the game there were lapses, especially out of the centre square in the last quarter, where as in the third quarter I thought we were dominant and the game flowed like that.

“But we weren’t able to keep our momentum going.”

Asked whether he was comfortable with the ball being in Graham’s hands late in the final term, Younie said he was.

“He’s a really good kick for goal, at training he doesn’t miss too many so I was reasonably confident,” he said.

Younie also praised the performance of Crouch who was dropped from the Crows’ side last week but hit back big time.

“He had 10 touches and nine clearances in the last quarter,” Younie said.

“He’s a young kid, he’s still getting used to the AFL environment and it’s really tough for a kid.

“He knows he doesn’t deserve to keep his spot from last week but I thought his attitude to come back and play the way we expect him to play and listen to instruction, I thought he was outstanding.”

North had a few shining lights with Jay Shannon at his typical bullocking best and he also made his presence felt on the scoreboard with two goals, while Marlon Motlop and Cohen Thiele created run from half back and along the wing.