It was a battle of the birds at the Adelaide Oval. The Crows hosted the hot Hawks, in what looked like marvellous conditions for footy.
To say it was a high-stakes Sunday is an understatement. A lot was riding on each game to end the round, and there were plenty of ramifications. There’s no mucking around this time of the year and almost every game seems like a final. It’s simply fine margins.
The way the first half was played, it was on track to become the game of the round.
There was a contrast in the way both teams wanted to play. The Hawks continue to buy into Sam Mitchell’s game plan. You know what you’ll get with the Crows as they’re usually always entertaining to watch.
It came down to pressure. Which team was going to withstand it better, as well as consistently apply it throughout the game. I thought in the first half the Hawks probably made the most of their opportunity and were more efficient. The Crows didn’t quite have a good forward-half connection and had a lot of play that broke down around half-forward, but they were able to still punish the visitors on turnovers. Hawthorn on the other hand did most of the damage at stoppage and Will Day was instrumental in that area.
Unfortunately, my prediction of this being a belter of a contest seemed to fizzle out a bit halfway into the third. Adelaide’s tall timbers were ineffective when the ball hit the ground due to the smaller Hawthorn defence having the athleticism and the speed to run the ball out of the back half. When the Crows pressure was up in the first quarter and parts of the second quarter, they were able to break down Hawthorn’s ball movement at half-back. They made them handball into congestion and stuck their tackles, which is where their dominance in turnover came from. Once Adelaide began to tire, Hawthorn took advantage. Not only was it the midfield that was dining out, but the interceptors started to become a factor and small forwards began to dine out, as well
My prediction of this game being a must-watch sadly didn’t come to fruition but there were still lots of learnings from this. Join me to see what caught my eye.
BREUUUUUSSSTTT
Teams that go down the rebuild path have to make some pretty tough list management decisions. One of them is letting go of some of the older types to give more opportunities to the kids.
I’ll admit I was a bit sceptical of Hawthorn’s list management decisions, and was worried they’d go down a similar path to North Melbourne. I think we can safely say Hawthorn has made the right decisions regarding which senior players to let go and which ones they’ve kept on the list.
At 33 years of age, Luke Breust still looks like he has plenty to offer. He’s been a key cog in the small forward brigade that is causing nightmares for opposition defenders.
Just having him out on the ground provides great leadership, which is what a young up-and-coming team like Hawthorn needs. The two goals he kicked today are just a bonus. As long as he continues to play his role and provide his leadership, as far as I’m concerned, he’s a main staple in the side.
Who knows, if Hawthorn ends up playing finals this year, he may have a very big say.
THE AURA OF WALKER
Speaking of veterans, it was good to have Tex Walker back out there today. He just has a swagger about him and he certainly has a presence.
The Texan, along with a lot of over-30-year-olds around the league, is proof that these players still have a lot to give. Unless they are stopping the development of young talent coming through and aren’t playing up to the standard, it pays to keep them around.
He could’ve easily finished with a bag of goals and he wasn’t helped by the lack of supply and/or ball use going inside 50 but he certainly contributed his fair share. Inaccuracy hurt him a little bit and that was the story of the Crows’ game.
There’s been lots of speculation over whether he still has another year in him or what Adelaide should do with him. If Adelaide does decide to move past him and he still decides he’s got plenty to give, I’m sure there’ll be a couple of clubs willing to give him a crack.
BEAUTIFUL DAY TO BE WRECKING HAVOC
I’ll give the whole Hawthorn midfield their flowers. They were all exceptional today. There was none more damaging than Will Day though, who essentially broke it all open for his side.
For me, the best players in the league are the ones that can punish you the most with the least amount of disposals. I look at players around the league that have this ability. Prime Dusty springs to mind, so does Shai Bolton, you could argue De Goey, Petracca and the Bont certainly, Hayden Young would also be one. Looks like we’ll soon start adding Day in this category.
Don’t be fooled by the 20 disposals. It’s not a huge count but if you go back and watch how he got those disposals and how he used them, you will see that it was certainly the difference. Even when he started getting attention from Jake Soligo in the second quarter after a blistering first, he was still able to contribute for four quarters. He kicked a spectacular goal and laid seven tackles, proving he worked just as hard without the ball.
It’s a shame Jordan Dawson sat this game out as I would have liked seeing him and Day go head-to-head. Hopefully, we can look forward to battles between the two in the coming future.
THE HEIR TO THE THRONE
With Dawson being out for this game, it’s only natural to look out for who was going to stand up for the home side.
Despite getting comprehensively beaten as a team I thought along with Laird, Soligo was the one who stood up. He’s played much better games but it was good to see how hard he worked across the four quarters to win the ball for his team.
Ever since he’s been a mainstay in that midfield, he’s taken the responsibility with both hands and has grown in leaps and bounds as a player. He’s a bit of a point of difference for the Crows midfield. He’s creative with the ball in hand and puts his teammates in better positions more often than not.
I would like to see him work on his kicking a little bit more and try to bump up his disposal efficiency. If he can work on getting on the scoreboard a little bit more also then that will separate him from the pack.
CRASH & BASH LIKE NASH
There’s been reports during the week that rival Victorian clubs are prepared to throw big money to pry unrestricted free agent, Conor Nash out of Waverley.
Those who aren’t late to the party will have seen it coming last year, and those who are wondering why he would demand such figures will have watched this game and been made aware.
Both midfields mind you, had some big bodies going through there. Laird and Berry are your nuggety-type inside bulls. Worpel and Newcombe are that for Hawthorn. And then you have Nash.
The 198cm midfielder took his career to the next level after a good chat with Mitchell back in 2021, where the then VFL coach questioned why he couldn’t become an AFL mid, after a failed trial as a forward. With the group of midfielders he has around him, he complements them nicely with the grunt he provides and the bone-crunching tackles he lays.
He finished just shy of 20 disposals and his eight tackles would leave some of the Crows boys pretty sore after today.
GIVE HIM THE KEAYS
I simply can’t end this review without a bit of Ben Keays love and admiration.
A little bit quieter today mainly due to the ball not spending much time in the Crows’ forward line but he certainly took his chances.
Most teams would love to have a player like Keays on their side because you know he’s going to give you 110% more often than not.
He can disrupt teams when he’s on song and his kicking for goals has improved out of sight.
When the going gets tough, I’d love to see Matthew Nicks give him the keys and the license to have a bit more freedom or do as he pleases. Let’s not forget he was once a full-time midfielder. Maybe when the game’s on the line, throw him to a Will Day or Jai Newcombe. If you don’t want to sacrifice his forward minutes, at least put him on an interceptor or a dangerous half-back. He’s too good a player to not be getting around it as often as he can. I’ve seen him do shutdown jobs and do a pretty good job of it.
Regardless of that, he performed his role and contributed to the scoreboard. That’s all you can ask for.
THE OTHER TIDBITS…
Connor Macdonald is a serious player. He’s taking the piss at the moment and is going under the radar for how good he can become. He’ll be a full-time midfielder in due time, but for now, while he continues to bide his time as a high half-forward, I believe he’ll become too good to pull out of that forward line.
Some tough players were running around out there, but one you wouldn’t expect to be tough and courageous is Luke Nankervis. With his backline under siege for a lot of the game, Nankervis stood up in big moments and kept putting himself in risky situations. You thought he was done for the day when he stopped Breust in his tracks with a big tackle which caused him to pop his shoulder, but he was back out on the field not long after he received some treatment. I can see him forging a pretty good career in years to come.
It’s amazing how much buy-in there is from the Hawthorn group. One man who exemplified this today was Mabior Chol. Not just today, but for a few weeks now. After coming across from Gold Coast, he’s transformed into a tough footballer, which is something you never really associated Chol with in the past. He just refuses to get beaten and that is a big reason why the Hawks can lock the ball in their forward half, and their smalls are relishing it. He’s having a purple patch.
A couple of the new kids the Crows have debuted in the past few weeks have won me over. I know a lot of Crows fans have been crying for a few of these names to come in over the years. I think Billy Dowling has a future. Zac Taylor looks to be a smart footballer. Hugh Bond didn’t have a big day but there’s something there. Fans and coaches will be hoping that a lot of these names blossom into superstars for the Crows and that the experience they’re getting now will hold them in good stead.
IN SUMMARY
It was shaping up to be a ripper game but Hawthorn’s running power was simply too much for Adelaide in the end. The Hawks looked undersized down back and were exposed by the Adelaide talls early. The lack of forward pressure once the ball hit the deck, found the tall Adelaide forward line wanting. This was not helped by the lack of pressure from the smalls.
A lot was riding on this game and ultimately Hawthorn passed the test. You can categorically say that the Crows’ season is done and they’ll look to see out the rest of the season.
Hawthorn continues to prove that their game plan stacks up and they have the cattle to make it work. They aren’t in the top 8 yet, but if their form continues they can potentially play finals in 2024. The Giants await at Manuka Oval for them next week, in what will feel like an Elimination Final and I know the whole footy world will be watching.
Adelaide should get one or two players back next week as they face Geelong in Geelong. Despite their season being categorically over, they’ll be looking to spoil the party for the Cats.
