Adelaide went down in its last SANFL hit-out of 2026, falling to Sturt by 28 points at Unley Oval on Saturday afternoon.

Despite a late Crows’ fight back in the fourth term, the deficit proved too much to overcome, with Sturt recording a 16.9 (105) to 11.11 (77) win.

The result led to the Crows finishing their campaign in seventh spot on the ladder with a 7-11 win-loss record.

SANFL Senior Coach Matthew Wright provided the following key takeaways. 

 Dowling leads from the front with standout four-quarter effort

Midfielder Billy Dowling put together a four-quarter display against the Double Blues, winning lots of the ball.

Dowling showed his composure with ball in hand, was effective with his possessions, and worked hard to impact going forward and support the backs.

 “He is a worker, I know he is quite young at SANFL level, but he is a leader amongst his peers,” Wright said.

 “I thought he stood up today in a challenging day.”

 Dowling amassed a game-high 30 disposals, seven marks, seven clearances and five inside-50s.

 Hinge fit and firing

Defender Mitch Hinge featured in his first full match since his return in Round 17 of the State League season, having played limited game-time as he worked his way back to full fitness from injury.

Hinge showcased his booming left foot, with his defensive versatility on display, defending well both in the air and at ground level, along with giving Adelaide punch out of the back half.

“He has played a lot of really high-level AFL footy, so we knew it was about the build, so to get a full game today you could see the punch he has and his defensive prowess,” Wright said.

 “He has a really good balance of defending first and then going at the game, as a forward you get caught defending him for large chunks of the game and ultimately that’s what the best half backs do to you.” 

Hinge collected 19 disposals, six marks, four marks and four inside 50s and five rebound 50s.

Edwards continues strong form

On-baller Charlie Edwards finished the season off strongly, and was damaging with his touches.

Edwards had a strong connection with ruckman Reilly O’Brien, bursting out of the centre square on multiple occasions to get the ball inside Adelaide’s forward 50. 

“He has played a lot of footy together with the likes of Dowling, ROB and Chayce (Jones) this year, with not a lot of AFL opportunities, but he continues to work week-in-week-out,” Wright said.

“With us not having a spot in the five to continue to show up and put in a shift, he did that again today.”

Edwards finished with 21 touches, five clearances and seven inside 50s.

Ludowkye shows growth

Young forward Archie Ludowyke made the most of his chances, booting four majors for the afternoon, to bring his total to 22 goals for the season.

Ludowyke presented well at the ball, along with impressing with his kicking, booting a goal from a tight angle in the third term.

“For a first-year key forward to impact in the SANFL, which we know how physical and how hard it is for young key forwards,” Wright said.

“For him to get the rewards over the course of the year with a couple of AFL games and to come back and kick four for the game, really pleased for his growth over the course of the year.”

Ludowyke finished with 14 touches, eight marks and six scoring shots.

Wright on the 2026 SANFL campaign

In his first full season as SANFL coach, Wright said he was pleased with the growth and development shown by many players. 

Despite missing out a SANFL finals berth, Wright said having an opportunity to coach the group and see the impact Adelaide’s first-year players had was a real standout, with the focus now on the AFL team’s campaign. 

“(It was a) disappointing finish to the year to lose four in a row and drop out of the finals, but we just spoke about it as a group and we saw some really good growth, we just probably didn’t see it as collectively as we would have liked,” Wright said.

“I thought our first-year players like Marshy (Mitchell Marsh), his game grew as the year went on, and Indy Cotton, a basketball convert who came across and the growth he had as an individual was huge. Those kids are going to springboard us going forward.

“It is disappointing we are not getting to see these blokes on Adelaide Oval in a finals capacity, but I really enjoyed it (coaching the SANFL) and really thankful to the club for the opportunity.

“The AFL is well and truly still in the hunt, so hopefully that goes on for five weeks.” 

SCOREBOARD

ADELAIDE: 2.2  3.5  5.8  11.11  (77)

STURT: 6.2  10.3  14.7 16.9 (105)

GOALS:

Adelaide: Ludowyke 4, Drury, Bennett 2, T.Murray, Crane, Bell

Sturt: Emmett 4, Dakin, Conforti, Fredrick 2, Lewis, Slade, Ferres, Grivell, Rawlinson, Doyle