SANFL 2018: North Adelaide hangs on for gritty win over Adelaide Crows
NORTH Adelaide held off an Adelaide Crows fightback to record a gritty win — its fifth victory of its SANFL campaign.
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NORTH Adelaide’s impressive start to the season continued after storming home to beat Adelaide by 22 points at Prospect Oval on Saturday.
The Roosters held a game-high 31-point lead early in the second term, only to cough it up after the Crows fought back and levelled the scores twice in the third quarter.
But North held on to claim a 12.10 (82) to 9.6 (60) victory.
The result, which helped the Roosters maintain top spot on the ladder with a 5-1 record, was soured by a hamstring injury to skipper Max Thring early in the first quarter.
Thring did not return to the field, but coach Josh Carr expected him to be fit for the match against South Adelaide in a fortnight, after the league-wide break for the state game.
Lewis Hender (four goals) and Mitch Harvey (three) starred inside 50 for North.
Sandover medallist Aidan Tropiano (28 disposals, nine tackles) was damaging at the stoppages and Callum Wilkie (27 possessions, six defensive rebounds) also found plenty of the ball.
North was ferocious with its attack on the body in the first quarter and found space through the middle. They used a mix of speedy ball movement with patient kicks to ensure the right option was found.
They were hungrier at each contest, but failed to reap any rewards on the scoreboard.
The hosts then managed to open up a five-goal lead early in the second term when AFL draft prospect Connor Rozee kicked his second major, but the Crows refused to go away.
The visitors’ defensive pressure increased and forced North into ball-handling errors, ensuring the margin did not go beyond two straight kicks at the main break.
Adelaide was led by AFL-listed rookie Patrick Wilson (31 touches, eight tackles) and Jackson Edwards (21 disposals). The Crows still had a chance to snatch the match before key forward Elliott Himmelberg was taken off the field on a stretcher at the 16-minute mark of the last quarter when his head hit the ground coming down from a marking contest. But acts of desperation from North, including an inspirational run-down tackle by Robbie Young, ensured the Roosters did not let the game slip away.
Carr said there was room for improvement, but praised his side for making the most of its opportunities in the last quarter. “We want to pride ourselves on our pressure around ... and our ability to win the ball on the inside and make the most of it on the outside.”
Crows coach Ryan O’Keefe was pleased with the way his side fought the game out.
SCOREBOARD
North Adelaide 4.2 8.4 10.5 12.10 (82)
Adelaide Crows 2.1 6.3 9.5 9.6 (60)
BEST — North Adelaide: Tropiano, Wilkie, Allmond, Hender, Spina. Adelaide: Jarman, Edwards, Wilson, Murphy, Signorello.
GOALS — North Adelaide: Hender 4, Harvey 3, McInerney, Rozze 2, C Barns. Adelaide: Brown, Davis, Dear 2, Hunter, O’Brien, Wilson.
UMPIRES: Broadbent, Lewis, Sobieraj.
CROWD: 1784 at Prospect Oval