Cam Ellis-Yolmen salvages something out of the Crows mess at Marvel

A week after being slammed for not employing a run-with player to shut down Geelong matchwinner Patrick Dangerfield, the Crows at least might have found an effective stopper.

SHUT DOWN: Kangaroo Ben Cunnington contests the ball with Crow Tom Lynch at Marvel Stadium on Saturday night. Picture: HAMISH BLAIR (AAP).

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A week after being slammed for not employing a run-with player to shut down Geelong matchwinner Patrick Dangerfield, the Crows at least might have found an effective stopper at Marvel Stadium last night.

The little-used Cam Ellis-Yolmen, who has played just 30 AFL games in eight seasons since being drafted from SANFL club Woodville-West Torrens at pick 64 in 2011, came into the team for dumped star Bryce Gibbs and performed his role well in a disappointing loss to North Melbourne that has the Crows’ premiership campaign on an early season’s knife edge.

Ellis-Yolmen — now on Adelaide’s rookie list after failing to cement his spot in Don Pyke’s side despite occasional flashes of brilliance — was given the unfamiliar role of tagging Kangaroos midfield ball magnet Ben Cunnington as Pyke finally decided to try to shut down an opposition playmaker.

Cam Ellis-Yolmen of the Crows (right) under pressure from Jamie Macmillan of the Kangaroos. Picture: AAP Image/Hamish Blair

Adelaide’s reluctance to use a defensive tactic to take out a star from the opposition has long been a bone of contention, prompting Port Adelaide 2004 premiership player Kane Cornes to this week say “if you don’t have a dedicated run-with player you are negligent as a football club’’.

“Pyke afforded Dangerfield an unforgivable amount of space around the stoppages and not one Adelaide player was prepared to sacrifice his own game for the good of the team,’’ Cornes wrote in his The Advertiser column.

But Ellis-Yolmen was.

The big-bodied 26-year-old, who stands imposingly at 190cm and 96kg, lined up on the smaller Cunnington (185cm, 88kg) in the middle at the first bounce.

He had an immediate impact, winning early ball and setting up co-captain Rory Sloane for the first shot at goal.

Defensively, Ellis-Yolmen was terrific, restricting Cunnington to just three disposals in the opening term and pushing him away from the footy at clearances, where the ball magnet, who went into the game averaging 31.7 disposals, is so effective.

At half-time, both players had 10 disposals as the Crows opened up a handy 14-point lead, despite being smashed 33-16 for inside 50s.

With the Crows under siege in the third term and letting a seemingly decisive 20-point lead quickly evaporate, Pyke moved Ellis-Yolmen off Cunnington to play as a forward.

Geelong premiership master tagger Cameron Ling expressed surprise, saying: “Cam Ellis-Yolmen has done a terrific job on Cunnington’’.

Brad Crouch of the Crows leaves the field injured during the round four AFL match between the North Melbourne Kangaroos and the Adelaide Crows at Marvel Stadium on April 13, 2019 in Melbourne, Australia. Picture: Scott Barbour/Getty Images

At that point, Ellis-Yolmen had 12 disposals to Cunnington’s 13.

Cunnington also was shifted forward and had more impact without Ellis-Yolmen hanging off him.

He finished with 21 touches to the Crow’s 16.

It was Ellis-Yolmen’s first AFL game of the season after two strong performances in the SANFL and while the team crashed and burned in the second half, he made the most of his chance.

At 1-3, Adelaide is in early season trouble and not playing anywhere near the type of fast, attacking, free-scoring football for which it has been accustomed.

But Ellis-Yolmen might have at least added a new string to his bow.