Round Nine v Western Bulldogs, Adelaide Oval
Adelaide’s four-game homestand ended with a dour yet important win over the Western Bulldogs who kicked fewer than three goals for just the second time since 1965.
Eddie Betts thrived in the wet conditions where accuracy was low, players crashed packs and over 200 tackles were laid.
Only 11 goals were kicked, and Betts kicked four of them in his 100th game for Adelaide, even finding a way to score from the pocket.
With a focus on moving the ball forward by foot at every opportunity, Adelaide had an incredibly lopsided disposal return with 234 kicks to 96 handballs.
But as the scoreboard showed, the game plan worked.
Rory Laird (28 disposals), Cam Ellis-
ADELAIDE 3.1 3.3 6.6 9.9
WESTERN BULLDOGS 0.3 1.7 1.10 2.14
GOALS: Betts 4, Fogarty, Lynch, Poholke, Murphy, Jenkins
BEST
NEXT: Season review: Myles Poholke
Round 10 v Melbourne, TIO Traeger Park
Adelaide players leave the ground disappointed after their loss to Melbourne
Adelaide suffered its biggest loss since Round 24, 2011 as the Demons flexed their muscles in Alice Springs in a 95-point win.
From the start, it was one-way traffic and brief moments of promise from Adelaide could not break down the Demons who scored easily and kicked with accuracy.
They controlled contested possessions and inside
Matt Crouch fought hard with 34 disposals and a team-high 14 contested possessions, Hugh Greenwood (21 disposals) landed 10 tackles and Rory Laird (30) was energetic across half-back.
Eddie Betts (two goals) and Richard Douglas (two) kicked four of Adelaide’s eight for the day.
MELBOURNE 7.1 12.2 18.6 23.8 (146)
ADELAIDE 3.1 4.2 5.4 8.7 (55)
GOALS: Douglas 2, Betts 2, Gallucci, Fogarty, Gibson, Jenkins
BEST
NEXT: Season review: Paul Seedsman
Round 11 v GWS, Adelaide Oval
Eddie Betts celebrates one of his two goals in Adelaide's Round 11 clash with GWS
Greater Western Sydney claimed the four points over Adelaide with a 16-point win at Adelaide Oval on the back of a six-goal-to-two second quarter.
Adelaide narrowly led by four points at
The fourth term provided plenty of excitement as Adelaide bounced back with two quick goals to snatch the lead.
When Jeremy Cameron
Bryce Gibbs (36 disposals) and Matt Crouch (36) were prolific while Paul Seedsman (two goals), Eddie Betts (two) and Richard Douglas (two) contributed on the scoreboard.
ADELAIDE 4.3 6.7 9.10 11.15 (81)
GWS 3.5 9.7 11.10 14.13 (97)
GOALS: Douglas 2, Betts 2, Seedsman 2, Murphy, Milera, Atkins, Jenkins, Fogarty
BEST
NEXT: Season review: Daniel Talia
Round 12 v Fremantle, Optus Stadium
Myles Poholke sends the ball forward during Adelaide's clash with Fremantle
It was a tough debut for Adelaide at Perth’s Optus Stadium as Fremantle held on for a three-point win over the Crows.
Adelaide had the final four scoring shots, but Myles Poholke was the only player able to split the posts – and with just seconds left on the clock.
The difference was a goal to second-year tall Brennan Cox, which came 12 minutes into the fourth quarter.
Earlier, Fremantle burst out of the blocks with a five-goals-to-one first term before Adelaide booted six majors in the second while keeping the Dockers goalless.
In a painful twist, it was then Adelaide who went goalless in the third as the momentum swung back and stayed with the home side.
Eddie Betts (two goals) and Josh Jenkins (two) were the only multiple goal kickers.
Bryce Gibbs (28 disposals) led the Crows’ midfield, Matt Crouch (25), Paul Seedsman (24) and Sam Gibson (23) also battled hard.
FREMANTLE 5.2 5.6 9.8 10.11 (71)
ADELAIDE 1.4 7.6 7.8 9.14 (68)
GOALS: Jenkins 2, Betts 2, Douglas, Gibson, Walker, Greenwood, Poholke
BEST
