Crows vs Tigers: How Adelaide Crows Beat Richmond Tigers at Etihad Stadium During AFL 2016 [Photos+ Videos]

The weekend has been extremely fiery for the Australian Football League as the Adelaide Crows proved themselves to be the better team when they got face-to-face with the Richmond Tigers.

The game started out with the Richmond Tigers in the lead. The first few minutes had been a win for Richmond Tigers, but the Adelaide Crows stole the spotlight during the second part of the game. By the third quarter, Adelaide Crows were already on their sixth goal.

By the second quarter, the Adelaide Crows were already 39 points ahead and they have already diminished the big margin left by the Richmond Tigers during the first quarter, according to The Age.

However, the Richmond Tigers did not gave in right away. Crows’ skipper Trent Cotchin had been showing off his skills and helping the team regain their momentum. When Cotchin snapped his foot during the Crows vs Tigers fight last weekend, this gave hope to the Richmond Tigers.

The Richmond Tigers continued to move forward after gaining the ball from Connor Menadue. Kane Lambert was able to achieve an impossible trick angle to save the team.

According to critics, the game was a little one-sided. Comparing the different skill sets of the teams, Adelaide Crows were far more elite than the Richmond Tigers. It was even believed that the Tigers will be the only team in the entire competition that would “look second-rate by comparison.”

Adelaide Crows on Fire

The Adelaide Crows’ midfielders have been quite strong in this game. According to AFL, the team “showed it has the depth to cover the huge hole left by Dangerfield, with Scott Thompson doing much of the grunt work at stoppages and Brodie Smith damaging in open space.

Josh Jenkins was also hyped with their lead. He even celebrated the win by “banging the ball into the corporate boxes behind the goals,” according to The Advertiser.

The team, overall, had synergy. Richard Douglas has been benefitting from the great running skills of his team mates Eddie Betts and David Mackay. Douglas’ tackles also paved the way for the Adelaide Crows to steal the game during the second quarter.

The gameplay the Adelaide Crows used was comparable to the game wih Geelong. They had multiple running members and their handballing was superb. The structuring of their player positions were also strong since most of the members of the team were flexible. Even Crows Captain Taylor Walker had to switch to a different role since they had to shift from the old-fashioned gameplay to this opposite lead-up forward style.

Walker has been supportive to the team plays. He has been blocking and following up on his teammates’ movements as the score boards move up. Though Walker could have probably done more kicking, he still did a great job for the Crows.

Crows Not Looking ‘Too Far Forward’

With their recent win, Adelaide Crows coach Don Pyke implied they wanted to take the games one at a time.

We knew we were in for a big challenge today, based on Richmond being a quality team (which was) coming off a loss last week. I was really pleased with the way the players committed themselves to the contest.

He said that they were actually threatened during the first part of the game and the team took a while to settle their game. When they got the momentum, “we really… got to work,” Pyke said.

Don Pyke added that he was impressed by the tackles they were able to achieve during the game. The tackles actually paved the way for the many goals they hit during the game.

As for their next move, Pyke said they are just beginning.

It’s round three. I think in this industry, you’re foolhardy if you look too far forward.

[Image credit: Scott Barbour/Getty Images]