Australian Football

Match Report

Fremantle has won a thrilling encounter in the wet against Adelaide at Football Park to maintain a hold on a top four position. The Dockers overcame a 10-point quarter-time deficit to grab an 11-point half-time lead, and then withstood several strong challenges from the Crows to run out winners by seven points in a very tight affair.

The match was played in very greasy conditions after torrential rain fell across Adelaide over the previous 24 hours. The Crows adjusted first, kicking three goals in the first term (two to Patrick Dangerfield and one to Jared Petrenko) after Fremantle's Nick Suban had kicked the first of the match in the second minute.

Fremantle worked its way back into the match in the second quarter, with an early goal to Tendai Mzungu. The Crows' Josh Jenkins responded soon after, but Adelaide did not score again for the remainder of the first half. In that period, Hayden Ballantyne, Nick Suban and Nathan Fyfe all added majors, giving the Dockers a buffer of just under two goals at the long break.

The Dockers' half-time lead was extended to 17 points when Chris Mayne marked and kicked the first goal of the third term at the six-minute mark, but Rory Laird kicked his first and the Crows' first in over a quarter three minutes later, to reduce the margin back to 11. A free kick to Zac Clarke for a push saw another goal to Fremantle at the 13-minute mark but the only other goal of the third term was a booming 55-metre long shot kicked buy Adelaide's Jason Porplyzia, and the Crows went into the last break of play trailing by just eight points.

After a couple of behinds early in the final term, Richard Douglas reduced that difference to just four, with a snap at the eight-minute mark. Not long after, it appeared that Patrick Dangerfield had put the Crows in front, when his free kick was signalled as a goal. But a boundary umpire intervened, insisting that he had heard the ball hit the post. A video replay was called for, and although it was deemed as inconclusive, the score was altered to a behind, to the chagrin of the vocal home crowd.

Barely a minute later, Dangerfield spun out of a tackle and kicked an undisputed goal, and the Crows led by three. A running goal by Michael Barlow restored the lead to the Dockers, and Fremantle immediately cleared the ball from the resultant centre bounce, with substitute Cameron Sutcliffe running in to kick the Dockers' second in a minute. It proved to be the last goal of an enthralling match. Although Adelaide attacked again, their forays forward were rewarded with behinds only to Jenkins and Brodie Martin and Fremantle held on to win an enthralling encounter by seven points.

The ever-reliable Barlow (32 disposals and a goal) was Fremantle's best, ably backed up by David Mundy and Luke McPharlin. For the Crows, Dangerfield (three goals, 21 touches) and Rory Sloane (30 possessions) were outstanding.

While Fremantle cling by half a game to a place in the top four, Adelaide's loss sees them sitting in ninth place, a game outside the top eight. The Crows will have another tough home encounter this Saturday when they take on Sydney, while the Dockers will enjoy a week off with a bye.

GOALS
Adelaide: Dangerfield 3; Petrenko, Jenkins, Laird, Porplyzia, Douglas
Fremantle: Suban 2; Crozier, Mzungu, Ballantyne, Fyfe, Mayne, Clarke, Barlow, Sutcliffe

BEST - SPORTAL.COM.AU
Adelaide: Sloane, Laird, Jacobs, Thompson, Dangerfield, Petrenko, Smith
Fremantle: Barlow, Mundy, Duffield, McPharlin, Fyfe, Duffield, D. Pearce, Hill

BEST - AFL.COM.AU
Adelaide: Dangerfield, Laird, Sloane, Rutten, Jacobs, Smith
Fremantle: Barlow, Mundy, McPharlin, Johnson, Fyfe, Mzungu

COACHES' COMMENTS
Brenton Sanderson (Adel): We won most of the stats but didn't win on the scoreboard, unfortunately. We had more shots for goal and didn't convert, but that's Fremantle's style, too. They're actually okay with rolling numbers behind the ball. Most of the day we were minus one, minus two in our forward 50.

Ross Lyon (Frem): I thought it was an emphatic response. [The players] displayed a fair bit of football character and our leaders stood up - Luke [McPharlin], David Mundy, Matty De Boer, Chris Mayne. I thought there some really strong physical challenges that both teams met and we took some opportunities.

INJURIES
Adelaide: Nil
Fremantle: Alex Silvagni (ankle) replaced in the starting line-up by Cameron Sutcliffe

SUBSTITUTES
Adelaide: Brodie Martin replaced David Mackay in the third quarter
Fremantle: Cameron Sutcliffe replaced Jack Hannath in the second quarter

UMPIRES: Stewart, Meredith, Wenn