In a weekend of crazy results, we almost got the craziest of all.
The Crows walk away with the win, but the suffering West Coast fans had a team to be proud of for the first time in a long while. As they farewelled two of their champions at halftime, you could almost sense this was a better version of the Eagles.
The blow-by-blow
First versus last is rarely going to be a close game, especially given the gap between the best and worst this season has offered. Coming into this game, the Eagles had won just one game for the entire season and had produced some ordinary football so far, as opposed to the Crows, who are not only top of the table but firing on all cylinders.
Unsurprisingly, the Crows did most of the attacking early, but a scrappy West Coast defence managed to keep the Crows at bay. Against the run of play, it was West Coast who hit the scoreboard first through Campbell Chesser.
However, the Crows were able to respond after James Peatling won a free kick by attacking the ball and drawing high contact during a forward 50 stoppage. Adelaide then took the lead through their superstar captain Jordan Dawson. Dawson roved a contest at the Crows’ half-forward flank and bombed it from just outside the 50.
Campbell Chesser almost kicked his second goal of the game, but he missed the gettable set shot. The Eagles did take the lead again after a sustained period of pressure led to Jobe Shanahan kicking the Eagles’ second goal of the game.
Fogarty then won a free kick from deep in the forward fifty, but somehow sprayed his shot across the face of the goal, tying the scores. The Crows then kicked back-to-back goals in a row through Luke Pedlar and Ben Keays. Zac Taylor should have then extended the Crows’ lead to 18 points, but his shot also slid across the face of the goal.
Liam Baker then kicked a goal after intercepting a dump kick from the Crows’ defence by Laird, which cut the margin back to just 2 goals. This would be the final score of the term, as the Crows went into the first break with a 13-point lead.
Unlike the first quarter, the Eagles did most of the attacking early in the second quarter, but unlike in the first quarter, the Eagles managed to take advantage of their early attack with Jobe Shanahan kicking his second goal of the game, even though he appeared to push Worrel in the back in the marking contest.
Riley Thilthorpe had his first shot of the game, but he pushed his free kick across the goal face. Campbell Chesser almost made the Crows pay, but his shot at goal collided with the post. Liam Ryan then brought the margin back down to just 2 points after drawing a high tackle from Adelaide’s ruckman Reilly O’Brien. Jobe Shanahan could have kicked his third goal of the game and given the Eagles the lead again, but he also missed a gettable shot from roughly 30 meters out on a minimal angle.
The closer the Eagles got, the more the West Australian crowd seemed to get into the game. Shanahan again had another chance, but the shot bounced through for a behind, tying the scores. After several missed opportunities, the Eagles finally took the lead through Jamie Cripps, who was the beneficiary of multiple pressure acts that locked the ball in the Eagles’ forward line.
With the seconds ticking down, both sides appeared to be happy for the Eagles to take a 6-point lead into the halftime break. Certainly, the lead at halftime brought a big reaction from Eagles fans in attendance.
The Crows almost erased the lead through Alex Neal-Bullen, but his low snap was intercepted before Hamish Davis kicked the first goal of his career with a goal which took a leg break to bounce through the goals, extending the Eagles’ lead out to 11 points. The Eagles then got another centre clearance with Jobe Shanahan finally kicking his third goal of the game.
The Crows then had a sustained period of attack, but they continued to be repelled by the Eagles’ defenders. Finally, Jake Soligo kicked Adelaide’s first goal of the quarter to bring the margin back down to 11 points. Even as Adelaide continued to attack, West Coast were still able to absorb the Crows’ attacks.
After a sustained period where both teams struggled to score, the Crows finally managed to hit the scoreboard through Zac Taylor, who kicked a goal to bring the margin back to single digits and a single-goal margin. The Crows were eventually able to regain the lead through Luke Pedlar’s third goal for the game.
Crows’ key forward Riley Thilthorpe then extended the lead out to 7 points, but the Eagles were able to get the goal back through Liam Ryan. Liam Ryan then kicked his second goal in a row and his third goal for the game to give West Coast back the lead. With less than a minute remaining, Riley Thilthorpe had a chance to put the Crows back ahead but missed his set shot.
The Eagles then got the first goal of the last quarter through Tim Kelly, through one of the ugliest set shots that never rose above more than 5 meters from the ground, but went through for a goal nevertheless. The Crows were able to respond through Darcy Fogarty, who took the margin back to just 3 points.
The Eagles continued to maintain their pressure and made the Crows’ defenders nervous and forcing them into uncharacteristic mistakes and completely holding the ladder leaders from scoring. Eventually, the dam wall broke, and Izak Rankine was able to turn a forward half turnover into a goal, putting the Crows ahead by a point.
Riley Thilthorpe, who had been held relatively quiet by his standards, kicked his second goal to give the Crows a 7-point lead. The Eagles, who had gone into full defensive mode, tried desperately to try and attack, which left holes in their defence. Thilthorpe then kicked his third goal for the game to give the Crows their biggest lead since the start of the second quarter.
Tyler Brockman reduced the margin to single digits again, but with only seconds left in the game, it would be too little, too late as the Crows held on to win by nine points.
The almost upset
In a week of surprising results and close encounters, the Eagles almost pulled off one of the greatest upsets of, not only this season, but of any in recent history. Leading until roughly halfway through the final quarter, had the Eagles held on, they would have become the first team in 18th to defeat a team in 1st on the ladder during the home and away season. The last time first place was beaten by the team in last place was Round 9, 2005, when West Coast lost to Collingwood at the MCG.
At that time, there were only 16 teams in the competition. While this win would have been an impressive feat by an Eagles side that has languished at the bottom of the ladder, this perhaps speaks to the ever-growing gaps between the top and bottom teams in the AFL. It’s also not a great sign, especially given that the AFL is set to add two more teams to the league in the coming years, when signs show that the talent pool may not be large enough to support that many teams.
Still, a lot of credit has to go to te Eagles, who performed far above any expectation coming into this game.
Resting and Managed
Just like games towards the end of previous seasons, clubs in the top positions have tried to rest their players in order to make sure that they are in the best possible shape come finals time. However, the flip side of that equation has always been, what happens if your underrated opponent shows up, and you potentially drop a game that you otherwise would have won?
Coming into this game, the Crows decided to rest Taylor Walker and Brodie Smith, perhaps with the idea of getting the veterans a chance to recover before finals. Obviously, one is more important than the other, and there is an argument that Smith is as much a depth player these days, as he is best 23. The Crows were already going to finish the round at the top of the table, given that Collingwood had lost their game earlier in the round. However, a loss to the Eagles could have been demoralising to a Crows side that is hoping to finish on top of the ladder heading into finals.
With the Crows facing Collingwood next week, I’m sure we’ll see Smith and Walker… or at least Walker, come straight back into the side, but given that they were not too far away from losing this game, it’s probably a gamble that many clubs may think twice about if this result had gone the other way.
Thilthorpe leaves it until late
Riley Thilthorpe appeared to be missing his forward partner, Taylor Walker, as the big key forward was held out of the game for the first half by Reuben Ginbey. However, Thilthorpe came alive in the second half, and the fourth quarter especially, when he kicked two goals to help ice the game for the Crows.
There is an old adage that the small men get tired, but the bigger men don’t get any smaller. This seemed to ring true for the Thilthorpe-Ginbey clash, as the longer the game progressed, the more involved the big Crow became.
Thilthorpe and Luke Peddlar ended up being the only multiple goal scorers for the Crows in the game, while Jobe Shanahan and Liam Ryan were the only multiple goal scorers for the Eagles, but going forward, Thilthorpe casts a big shadow over the 2025 finals series.
It’s been a while since a big forward grabbbed some finals by the scruff of the neck, and whilst Ginbey was excellent for three quarters, we saw why Thilthorpe has been rated, and is rated, so highly not only by Adelaide supporters, but by footy supporters in general.
He is a monster!
Super performance from the Crows Captain
No player on the ground was as influential as Crows captain Jordan Dawson. While Thithorpe may have kicked the goals, and Rankine was the excitement machine, Dawson was a powerhouse for the Crows yet again.
On top of Dawson’s 26 possessions, he also laid 14 tackles for the game, including three tackles inside the Crows’ forward 50. It again speaks volumes of the season that Dawson is having that commentators talking about his performances are running out of superlatives to describe him.
Add in 11 inside 50s with that beautiful penetrating boot of his, and you had exactly the type of game befitting a captain of an AFL club. But not every club has a Jordan Dawson. Some have nobody even close.
The run home
With this game wrapping up Round 22, only two rounds are remaining for the 2025 home and away season. For the West Coast Eagles and their fans, it means that they only have two more opportunities to add to their tally of one win so far before they run out of time. The Eagles will head to Marvel Stadium next week to take on the Bulldogs, who need to win to keep their hopes of seeing September action, before the Eagles finish their season off back in Perth against the Sydney Swans. While this may be a chance for the Eagles to sneak a win, as the Swans have nothing left to play for, it would require the Eagles to play as well as they did against Adelaide to manage it.
Meanwhile, the Crows have a tough game next week when they host Collingwood in a clash that will have massive ramifications for spots in the top four. The Pies are struggling, but if they get over the Crows, it would open the chance that they could be knocked off top spot by the Cats and drag them closer to the middle of the pack. If Adelaide wins, they would be piling on a Collingwood side that has already lost four of its last five games. It’d almost guarantee top spot and a home final.
The Crows then finish their season against North Melbourne at Marvel Stadium, which the Crows would be expected to win and win comfortably. Then again, many would have picked Adelaide to comfortably beat West Coast today.
You get the feeling that every person not affiliated with the Crows was hoping the Eagles would go on with it in this game. The Crows came good when it mattered – good sides win close games. However, West Coast played close to their best footy of the year in this game, and it was a bit of a shame that they didn’t have ten more minutes in them.
As for the Crows, the emotion of the Eagles may have overwhelmed a lesser team. Their fans may have wanted a more comfortable win, but I’ll leave you with this.
Calm waters don’t make good sailors.
