Australian Football

Match Report

The only other Saturday afternoon game would take place in the northern suburbs at the X-Convenience Oval in Elizabeth as the Bulldogs faced the Crows. The Bulldogs won their Round 3 match at Elizabeth in a thrilling finish, a free kick and subsequent goal in the dying moments allowing them to win by four points. But then came their Round 12 match in the Barossa, Adelaide hammering the Dogs by 68 points. Centrals just didn't adapt to the windy conditions, often sending the ball out of bounds much to the annoyance of their fans. Both sides came out on top in their respective opening round games, the Bulldogs victorious in their northern derby against the Roosters by 27 points and the Crows stole the points at Noarlunga with the last goal of the game against South. Early on, the Crows were dominating the possessions and the forays into the 50. Their accuracy left much to be desired though, kicking 1.6 while the Dogs made the most of their chances with their 2.1 to lead by a point at quarter-time. The Bulldogs then became the hunters, running out to a six-kick lead going into second term extra time. A late Crows goal brought that back down to five, all scores counted the Dogs kicked 5.2 to 1.2 to lead by 25 points at the long break. The Crows had a few chances to reel that gap in when play restarted, but more missed opportunities would be punished by the re-invigorated Centrals outfit. The Doggies added a further 4.2 to Adelaide's 2.4, pushing their lead out to 35 points going into the final stanza. The visitors only managed one final major in the last quarter as the Dogs rammed the point home with a further 4.2 to close out the match and run out 55-point victors. The reigning Magarey Medallist was Centrals' best afield, Harry Grant notching up 30 disposals, six marks and five clearances. The Crows named Jay Boyle as their best on ground, with 26 disposals and six marks.