Crows show they're up for a fight

ADELAIDE coach Brenton Sanderson warned that it would "get ugly" because of Fremantle's stifling gameplan - but the 29-point win ended up being pretty.

Dockers v Adelaide

ADELAIDE coach Brenton Sanderson warned that it would "get ugly" because of Fremantle's stifling gameplan.

But not even Sanderson could have predicted just how pretty his side's 29-point win against the Dockers would be at Patersons Stadium yesterday.

After leading by a commanding 36 points 24 minutes into the second term, the Crows looked shot when the hosts hit the front three minutes into the final term.

But the spirit of Sanderson's men quickly became evident when they piled on the next five goals in succession to claim their first victory against the Dockers at Subiaco since round three back in 2009.

Now sitting in a position of strength heading into the bye with a 8-2 win-loss record, the Crows were powered by their midfield led by Rory Sloane, Patrick Dangerfield and Matthew Wright.

Popular forward Taylor Walker slipped straight back into the action with four goals, two of which came in the final-term frenzy.

An inspired Fremantle came out strongly after half-time but it wasn't until the 12th minute of the third term that the Dockers made their desperation count on the scoreboard.

And it came after Crows midfielder Bernie Vince was reported for striking Dockers utility Zac Clarke off the ball, resulting in a free kick and goal to Fremantle midfielder Matthew Barlow.

With the home crowd suddenly in the contest, the Dockers kicked three of the next five goals to close the gap to just nine points at three-quarter time.

Fremantle captain Matthew Pavlich - who had previously been well-held by Crows defender Daniel Talia - sprang to life while Stephen Hill, who had been restricted by Crows captain Nathan van Berlo, put his side within reach with a fine snap from 40m.

Despite Scott Thompson being well held by Dockers' master tagger Ryan Crowley, the Crows midfield lifted during the second term to pile on five of the first six goals after the first change.

Star on-ballers Sloane and Dangerfield made the most of the attention being paid to Thompson, chalking up 19 disposals each before half-time.

And when they weren't having an impact at the stoppages - the Crows led the clearances by 24 to 17 at half-time - it was the support cast led by Matthew Wright picking up the slack.

The much-improved Wright was outstanding during the first half, kicking two goals and making the majority of his 16 possessions count through eye-catching efficiency.

Malcolm Blight Medallist Richard Douglas - who was the substitute last week as he resumed from a hamstring injury - was also working his way back to peak fitness while small forwards Jason Porplyzia and Jared Petrenko found plenty of the ball further up the field.

But of most concern for Sanderson would have been the manner in which the Crows tailed off before the main break, conceding three of the last four goals to the Dockers.

Two of which were scored by Crowley, who was keeping Thompson honest by working hard the other way once his his side gained possession.

The hard-working shut-down man finished off a nice one-handed mark before converting a strong contested mark in the pocket just four minutes later.

Suddenly, the Dockers - who looked seemingly out of the contest - had a pulse.

Any concern about Crows forward Taylor Walker struggling to pick up the pace of the game was quickly put to bed when the boy from Broken Hill created his side's first goal of the game.

Walker smothered a defensive pass from the Dockers, gathered the ball and flicked out a nice handball to Rory Sloane who opened the Crows' account with a 20m left foot snap.

Walker was heavily involved in most of the Crows' scores in the first term, an intelligent tap to Ian Callinan and a handy knock on to Kurt Tippett helping the visitors make their presence felt on the scoreboard.

And when Walker kicked his first major of the game nearing time-on of the opening term, he proved he was having an influence in more ways than one.

Adelaide's substitute Graham Johncock was injected into the match during the third quarter and kicked a goal.

ADELAIDE  5.2  10.5  12.6  17.9  (111)

DOCKERS  3.3   6.6   10.9  12.10 (83)

Best: Adelaide: Sloane, Dangerfield, Wright, Walker, Petrenko, van Berlo, Shaw. Fremantle: Johnson, Crowley, Broughton, De Boer, Barlow.

Goals: Adelaide: Walker 4, Wright, Sloane 3, Callinan 2, Johncock, Jenkins, Petrenko, Porplyzia, Dangerfield. Fremantle: Pavlich 3, Mayne, Barlow, Crowley 2, Mundy, Ballantyne, Hill.