Adelaide’s SANFL side has returned to the winners list, defeating Norwood by 21 points at Centenary Oval in Port Lincoln on Sunday afternoon.

Playing for the Teakle Cup – the annual SANFL match played in Port Lincoln – the Crows never trailed and were able to capitalise on a fast start to run out 14.5 (89) vs 8.20 (68) victors.

Here are the five key takeaways from the match:

Fast starting Crows

Adelaide was fast out of the blocks against Norwood, kicking seven goals to one in the opening term to take a 36 point advantage into the first break.

Kicking with the breeze, the Crows made sure to get the momentum going their way, winning the inside 50 count 19 to nine.

Adelaide was efficient when it had opportunities to score, converting seven of its eight scoring shots, a trend that continued as the game wore on.

“We knew the conditions were going to be tricky, so we wanted to start well and put some runs on the board and we were able to go forward and knock a few goals in,” SANFL Senior Coach Matthew Wright said.

“It was an important start, a really combined effort from the group, I thought we executed when it went in there and got the scoreboard going our way.”

Pedlar gets reward

Forward Luke Pedlar played a big part in Adelaide’s first quarter dominance, booting three goals in the term.

Pedlar was damaging when the ball was in the Crows’ forward half, presenting strong to his teammates to take three marks inside 50, which he went back and converted.

“His effort hasn’t waned for a long period of time, he was able to get the reward for all the other good things he has been doing,” Wright said.

“For him to start the game so well today was awesome for the kid and he kept it up during the entire match.”

Pedlar finished with 12 touches, six marks, three tackles and four goals.

Jones plays pivotal role

Wingman Chayce Jones played a crucial part in the Crows win, lining up wherever he was needed to best help the team.

When Norwood had the breeze going its way, Jones played across half back and behind the ball, able to limit the effectiveness of the Redlegs forward ball movement, while being clinical with his ball use out of the back half.

“I was really impressed with him and his ability to go behind the footy at times, play across half back and really impact in the second and fourth quarter when they had the breeze,” Wright said.

“His ability to limit their scoreboard effect was really important for us, it went a long way to us getting the job done today.”

Jones finished with 25 disposals, six marks, two tackles and 10 rebound 50s.

Schoenberg leads the way

Onballer Harry Schoenberg made the most of his possessions against the Redlegs, with each of his touches impactful.

Schoenberg led the game in clearances with nine and inside 50s with eight, in a dominant midfield performance.

Wright labelled him as “instrumental” to Adelaide holding the ball in its forward half.

“He’s probably been our most consistent at setting the tone for the entire group, his leadership has grown so much,” he said.

“He is in a really good space, he is playing a really good brand of football and he was one today that I thought his ability to get out of stoppage and press the game contributed to us playing the match in our front half.”

Schoenberg had 23 disposals, five marks and seven tackles.

Burgess adds to goal tally

Forward Chris Burgess continued to prove he is one of the SANFL’s most prolific goalkickers, booting four majors to sit second in the Ken Farmer Medal tally with 14 goals.

Burgess showcased his ability to score in different ways, crumbing the ball up off the ground to snap in his first, along with roving off the pack to dribble through his third.

“He’s one whose game hasn’t changed from preseason to in-season he was just able to execute today in front of goals,” Wright said.

“He also gives off a lot of goals, so his ability to play his role and bring others into the game has been super impressive.”

Burgess also amassed nine disposals, three marks – two contested – and three tackles.

Adelaide’s SANFL side will next play Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval on Saturday afternoon with the first bounce at 3:10pm .                                                               

The game will be a curtain raiser to the AFL Showdown. 

SCOREBOARD

ADELAIDE: 7.1  9.1  13.4  14.5  (89)
NORWOOD: 1.1  4.11  5.11  8.20  (68)

GOALS:

Adelaide: Burgess, Pedlar 4, Drury 3, Murphy 2, Cook
Norwood: Newton 3, Binder 2, Rokahr, Hamilton, Callow

Best: Murphy, Jones, Schoenberg, Madgen, Burgess, Bond