A dominant performance for Adelaide, though at a cost
An emotional Erin Phillips talks to Sam Lane, emphasising the important of the flag to the team, and the brilliant season they’ve had. When Lane pushes about Phillips’ injury, the Adelaide star just says, “Unfortunately that’s sport, and that’s contact sport. Hopefully I can be back next season. I’d like to play on. It’s a tough rehab, I’ve done it before but I’d like to get through it.” Class act. She and Chloe Scheer are the two serious injuries for Adelaide out of today, while the other players who went down at various stages seemed to recover.
The final stages may have been scrappy but Adelaide blew the game away with a brilliant second quarter. They were so slick, so polished, hitting targets, surging downfield any time they had the chance, and just washing away Carlton with their momentum and speed. They were irresistible, and the goals came about from seeming inevitability more than any one player – someone was always going to score.
Ebony Marinoff is super emotional while being interviewed, partly about concern for the club’s “spiritual leader”, partly about the crowd and the result. “To get over 50 is just unbelievable, we would never have thought that.”
It’s the right result, in football terms. They’ve been the best team of the season, Adelaide, though they probably should have been playing Fremantle in the final had the conference system not thrown things out of whack. Carlton battled gamely, and improved week on week over the back half of the season, but were always likely to be outclassed.
Celebration time in South Australia, and congratulations to the Crows for their second flag, a dominant win by 45 points. That’s it from us for now.
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Full time! Adelaide 10.3.63 defeat Carlton 2.6.18
The Adelaide Crows are premiers for 2019! The wrestle finally comes to an end, with some tired and deflated players seeing out the last rites. A final forward foray for the Crows comes from a run through the middle with about five players free and looking for the ball, but the final pass forward can’t find a target. The crowd tenses, the siren sounds, and the Crows have made it two out of three in the AFLW.
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Two big rounds of applause swell around Adelaide Oval, merging together. First, when Erin Phillips emerges from the race on crutches to soak up the last couple of minutes of a premiership win. Second, when a final crowd of 53,034 is announced on the big screen.
13 minutes, 4th quarter: Super slick work from Thompson at half-back, who looks like she’s going to be tackled but dummies two players in a row and finds a pass by foot up through the middle. There’s infringement on the mark and a 50 penalty results. The ball finishes with Cramey’s mark in the forward pocket but she misses across the face for Adelaide, no score.
8 minutes, 4th quarter: Chloe Dalton is in the right place at the right time to mark a square-up kick from the boundary line right in front of goal. But her set shot from 40 is errant. Nothing has clicked for the Blues today. It’s 63-18.
3 minutes, 4th quarter: These are some tired players, mentally and physically. Arm-wrestle football rolls scrappily up and down the flanks. When the Crows get into their forward pocket there are about half a dozen attempted snaps smothered or scrubbed, and eventually cleared.
Three-quarter time: Adelaide 10.2.62 – Carlton 2.5.17
As Phillips goes down the race, Harrington yells at her Carlton teammates to switch back on and play the game. Adelaide’s Stevie-Lee Thompson is back on the ground, as is Carlton’s Tayla Harris. So some good news on the injury front at least. Ponter takes another strong mark with seconds to play in the quarter but pushes her kick wide.
Phillips is sitting up on the cart and wiping tears from her face is she slowly goes off, and now, a strange procession begins. A Carlton opponent runs up to clasp her hand in solidarity, and Phillips pats the side of her opponent’s face. Then one of her teammates runs up for the same. And as the cart slowly makes its way towards the race, player after player runs up to clasp hands and wish her all the best. Solemn and spontaneous. The crowd swells into loud applause as she nears the boundary line, and she raises her hands over her head to applaud them in return. “Please don’t let that be goodbye, let it be see you later,” is the line of the TV commentary. The competition’s biggest star takes her leave.
15 minutes, 3rd quarter: Oh God, call it off. The Crows have won but players are dropping like flies. And this time it’s Erin Phillips, best on ground so far, but she’s gone down and surely has done her knee badly. There was no contest, she was just changing direction while chasing a tackle, her foot didn’t land quite right, and the knee went out from under her. She hits the turf immediately and in agony, and anyone who’s done an ACL before knows what that looks like. Of course we’ll wait on the medical report but it looks like a textbook case. She needs a stretcher and the cart to leave the field. That’s devastating.
Goal! Adelaide 10.2.62 – Carlton 2.5.17
12 minutes, 3rd quarter: Good build-up from the Crows after an attritional start to the quarter. Mullane marks bravely at half-forward running with the flight. Switches play to Forth on the far side, who spots up Phillips leading up from full-forward. Phillips’ set shot from 40 splits the middle.
9 minutes, 3rd quarter: Now it’s Van Dyk who’s being helped off the ground after being knocked heavily during a tackle. The Blues get the ball forward but it’s ruled touched before Vescio marks at full forward. She has to weave around a couple of defenders in desperation and so her high snap fades off line. It’s 56-17.
4 minutes, 3rd quarter: And another injury, good grief. This time it’s the speedster Stevie-Lee Thompson, getting her ankle twisted as she goes down in a tackle. She’s helped to the bench for assessment.
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1 minute, 3rd quarter: God, this is no good. The Blues throw Tayla Harris and Bri Davey into the centre square to contest the bounce, and while both of them throw themselves at the footy they have a clash of knees and both look the worse for wear. Harris has come off and looks uncomfortable, Davey walks it off and plays on.
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Crowd is announced at 46,000
That’s most of the capacity of Adelaide Oval (which from memory is about 52k), and a record for the AFLW by a long way (again from memory the previous best was about 25k). Unbelievable result.
Medical update is that Chloe Scheer has been sent for scans and will take no further part in today’s match. Fingers crossed that she comes through ok.
Holy balls. That’s a massive crowd at Adelaide Oval. They’ve opened up the top tier.
Riverbank stand now open for business. Safe to say this crowd a smidge too large for Norwood Oval #AFLWGF pic.twitter.com/K4RuACBPcI
— Sarah Black (@_sjblack) March 31, 2019
Half-time: Adelaide 9.2.56 – Carlton 2.4.16
Another goal on half-time for Adelaide! It’s Jones again, the provider turned receiver, running into the pocket to mark on her chest sliding forward. The siren sounds. She doesn’t care. Set shot, tight angle for a right-footer. But she slides it right and then works it back left, sneaking past the right goal post.
What a quarter of football from the Crows! They’ve won the flag by half time.
This is the Jones pass, check it out.
Three in a row! Danielle Ponter, you star! ⭐️#AFLWGF pic.twitter.com/hyDzJUs1aV
— AFL Women's (@aflwomens) March 31, 2019
Goal! Adelaide 8.1.49 – Carlton 2.4.16
18 minutes, 2nd quarter: Finally a goal for the Blues. McCormick’s clearing kick is intercepted by Bri Davey, who takes her time over the set shot from the right forward pocket and guides it home.
Goal! Adelaide 8.1.49 – Carlton 1.4.10
16 minutes, 2nd quarter: The Crows are on fire! That pass forward was champagne. Again it’s the turnover, the Crows streaming downfield, Jones with the ball having a bounce and drawing players and running wide. From outside 50 on the right forward flank she can see that she has Ponter running towards goal one on one. So Jones weights the long pass perfectly, clears the defender, lands it on Ponter’s side of the contest, and Ponter can run onto the bouncing ball and kick her third in six minutes!
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Goal! Adelaide 7.1.43 – Carlton 1.3.9
14 minutes, 2nd quarter: Ponter doesn’t slow down, though. Another big mark at full forward, another goal.
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11 minutes, 2nd quarter: Talk about highs to lows. Scheer has just gone down with a knee injury. She had a reconstruction a couple of years ago after doing her ACL. This time she’s in a fairly innocuous contest for the ball, goes to ground a bit awkwardly, but can’t get back up. She’s helped off after a delay by the trainers.
Goal! Adelaide 6.1.37 – Carlton 1.3.9
9 minutes, 2nd quarter: But not for long! A screamer is hauled in by Chloe Scheer at centre-half forward! She saw the long ball in, got the run, and used her Carlton opponent as a footstool. Up she goes and comes down with the mark! Lands flat, bounces to her feet in an instant, and rakes a long ball to full forward running around the mark. Ponter takes the grab at full forward, plays on, goal.
This. Is. Elite. #weflyasone #aflwgf #AFLWCrowsBlues pic.twitter.com/m8Vl8zAv2j
— Mikey Nicholson (@Mikey_Nicholson) March 31, 2019
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7 minutes, 2nd quarter: Li goes inside 50 again for the Crows but Harrington takes a strong relieving mark running back. She’s desperately trying to hold this defence together...
6 minutes, 2nd quarter: The first behind for the Crows, as Renee Forth marks after another centre clearance, but the tall ruck Downie is able to get a fist to the ball on the goal-line. It’s 31-9.
Goal! Adelaide 5.0.30 – Carlton 1.3.9
4 minutes, 2nd quarter: Five in a row and the Crows look lethal! Another clearance, another forward foray, and while Phillips can’t control a bouncing ball at full forward, she’s collected high by the attempted tackle. That’s the panic that a great player around the ball can bring. She kicks straight from 25.
Goal! Adelaide 4.0.24 – Carlton 1.3.9
2 minutes, 2nd quarter: Clinical surging football from the Crows! Every player on the field has pushed into Carlton’s half, but that just means that there’s a paddock to use when the turnover comes. Phillips kicks a long ball around the body towards the forward 50, and Stevie-Lee Thompson is streaming by as part of a two-on-one. Gathers the loose ball and runs on with a bounce to about 10 metres out to ram it home.
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Quarter time: Adelaide 3.0.18 – Carlton 1.3.9
Yet another 50-metre penalty against the Crows, and they could have been made to pay for this ill-discipline. But the shot from near the 50 falls short. Adelaide up by 9 points at the break.
Goal! Adelaide 3.0.18 – Carlton 1.2.8
17 minutes, 1st quarter: Lovely movement from the Crows! Chelsea Randall takes the handball receive in traffic outside 50. Kicks towards goal, quick hands on the half-volley, and Martin is running by towards goal about 15 out at just the right moment. Dobs it.
Goal! Adelaide 2.0.12 – Carlton 1.2.8
15 minutes, 1st quarter: The Crows hit the front! Carlton have had eight inside-50s to four this quarter but haven’t made the most of them. Phillips marks strongly about 40 out and goes back for a set shot. It fades from 45 to the right of the goal and short, but Considine is waiting down and snaps the major from an angle. Sharp!
13 minutes, 1st quarter: Ponter is nearly free and clear out the back door, streaming into a vacant forward line, but Wilson of the Blues puts on the afterburners, puts in a chase, and runs her down in a tackle. Holding the ball.
11 minutes, 1st quarter: Bonkers work from Varnhargen, who is annoyed at a free kick on the forward flank and so throws the football to the ground. There’s another 50-metre penalty against the Crows. But this time the set shot is punched through on the line and the Blues via Pound can only get a point. It’s Adelaide 6-8 Carlton.
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Goal! Adelaide 1.0.6 – Carlton 1.0.6
7 minutes, 1st quarter: Adelaide sweep back the other way! A boundary throw-in in the forward pocket, spilling to Phillips who snaps but is smothered. The ball comes out to half back but is turned over. Hatchard swoops and takes a running shot at goal, and nails it!
Goal! Adelaide 0.0.0 – Carlton 1.0.6
4 minutes, 1st quarter: The Blues kick the first goal! What odds of that? Prespakis did the work on the wing, ran into space at half-forward, takes the mark and then is infringed upon. 50 metre penalty takes her to about 20 metres from goal, with Phillips the unlikely culprit, and Prespakis slots the set shot. Call it while we can: boilover!
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3 minutes, 1st quarter: The siren sounds, the ball is bounced, and Erin Phillips wins the first possession. Three things that all seem inevitable. She was best on ground in the flag last year and gets the first centre clearance. But the Blues are able to rally in defence and get the ball up to the wing, where Prespakis and Vescio, a couple of the stars, are in the action early.
National anthem time, and the teams have arms around each other on the field as some sing along and some stand quietly to soak up the moment. Good cheer from the crowd as it comes to an end. The first warning siren sounds as a few last-minute drills and sprints take place. We’re nearly there.
Carlton
Back: Van Dyk, Harrington, Stevens
Half-back: Dalton, Wilson, Pound
Centre: Davey
Half-forward: Brazzale, Moody, Lucas-Rodd
Forward: Vescio, Harris, Walker
Followers: Downie, Prespakis, Hosking
Bench: Gee, Edwards, Hosking, Mullane, Loynes
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Adelaide
Back: Cox, Allan, Mules
Half-back: Rajcic, Randall, Foley
Centre: Phillips
Half-forward: Ponter, Scheer, Cramey
Forward: Jones, Thompson, Varnhagen
Followers: Foley, Hatchard, Marinoff
Bench: Martin, Forth, Li, Considine, McCormick
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Carlton on the other hand have battled through at times, with four wins in the regular season and a percentage narrowly in the negative. But they smashed the high-scoring big-winning Fremantle Dockers off the park last week for a massive underdog result. They did have home-ground advantage for that match thanks to the AFL’s disastrous conference system, so they’ll face a much stiffer task to produce another upset here. They do, though, have a particular bit of momentum thanks to Tayla Harris, who has become the symbolic leader of a movement for the women’s game to be treated with more respect.
It’s all about Adelaide this season. They topped Conference A with a blinder of a season, losing their first game by a point and then sweeping all before them with seven in a row. Their average winning margin has been 39 points, which is purely bonkers given the short game-time has meant some teams struggle to put together big scores.
Preamble
Grrrrrrrand Final time! The Adelaide Oval is primed to see whether the home-town Crows can win a second flag. Up against them are the hard-working side from the less-than-glamour Conference B, the Carlton Blues. It’s been a pretty tough couple of decades for Carlton in both women’s and men’s football, so a premiership here would mean a huge amount to a battling club.
