Adelaide makes a statement with big win over Richmond in Grand Final rematch
AFTER a goalless Grand Final, Josh Jenkins was the unlikely hero with five goals as Adelaide exacted a small measure of revenge against Richmond and put a difficult week behind them.
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THAT’S how you make a statement.
With Josh Jenkins proving an unlikely hero, Adelaide exacted a small measure of revenge for last year’s humiliating Grand Final loss – and ended a difficult week when its pre-season camp was questioned – with a courageous six-goal win against premier Richmond.
Unlike last year’s Big Dance when the Tigers ended a 37-year premiership drought, the Crows stood tall under pressure in the Grand Final rematch.
Undermanned and underdone going into the game with seven members of last year’s Grand Final team missing, Adelaide suffered four injuries at Adelaide Oval but still prevailed, beating Richmond at its own game.
The Crows, who lost club champion Matt Crouch early in the second quarter with a strained hamstring, also had David Mackay concussed and All-Australians Rory Sloane (foot/ankle) and Daniel Talia (knee) hurt.
But they appeared galvanised by the Grand Final disaster and criticism of their controversial pre-season camp on the Gold Coast, squaring their win-loss ledger at 1-1 after a Round 1 loss to Essendon.
Adelaide won on the back of dominating contested possessions 192 to 145 while several players who failed in the grand final made amends on the smaller stage.
Jenkins – goalless in the Grand Final – booted five on four-times All-Australian defender Alex Rance, including four in the first half.
Captain Taylor Walker – playing his first match after a serious pre-season foot injury – booted four and Sloane was superb after being hurt early.
All-Australian defender Rory Laird, who signed a three-year contract extension on Wednesday, was brilliant with 42 disposals while Hugh Greenwood was as tough as an ox, gathering 19 contested possessions and eight clearances.
Norm Smith Medallist Dustin Martin was spectacular for Richmond with five goals but he did not get enough support from his team-mates.
The Crows surprisingly let Martin roam free in the centre square at the start, refusing to put a run-with player on him.
The Tigers took just 75 seconds to remind Adelaide of last year’s Grand Final when Croweater Shane Edwards swooped on a clearance and bounced through a goal with his left foot.
Jenkins then had a purple patch that ignited the home side. He pushed Rance aside like a ragdoll, oumarking him in a pack situation, twice forcing him to give away free kicks as the pair locked horns physically and then beat him with his pace to kick a goal on the run with his left foot.
Adelaide’s tactic was clear. Jenkins played as close to goal as he could to drag intercept king Rance away from the play and it worked a treat.
While Jenkins was having an impact, midfielders Bryce Gibbs, Sloane and Crouch were big ballwinners as the Crows had 25 more disposals and, tellingly, nine more contested possessions, for the opening term as they battled their way to a two-point lead.
Adelaide bolted to a 20-point lead five minutes into the second term when small forward Lachlan Murphy, playing just his second match, booted two smart goals in a minute and Jenkins again beat Rance to win a free ball and goal.
But while their teammates were celebrating, Crouch (left hamstring) and Sloane (right foot/ankle) limped from the ground. Still, the Crows refused to be denied.
ADELAIDE 4.4 11.4 14.7 18.10 (118)
RICHMOND 4.2 9.4 10.9 12.10 (82)
GOALS
Crows: Jenkins 5, Walker 4, Sloane 2, Murphy 2, Fogarty 2, Gibbs, Ellis-Yolmen, Greenwood
Tigers: Martin 5, Caddy 3, Edwards, Lambert, Bolton, Townsend
BEST
Crows: Laird, Jenkins, Greenwood, Walker, Sloane, Gibbs, Jacobs.
Tigers: Martin, Caddy, Edwards, Lambert, Nankervis.
INJURIES
Crows: M.Crouch (hamstring), Mackay (concussion), Talia (knee), Sloane (foot/ankle).
Tigers: Nil
Official crowd: 49,743 at the Adelaide Oval
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