Geelong's Harry Taylor took Crows full-forward out of the match at Simonds Stadium. Picture: Scott Barbour. Source: Getty Images
FOR the Crows, thank heavens this was a practice match; the effort at Simonds Stadium was a screeching signal that it is time for them to ramp matters up in few weeks leading up to the home-and-away season.
Smashings such as this 10-goal loss prompt an obvious question: was Geelong awesome or Adelaide aweful? The answer likes somewhere in between, but Adelaide looked flat yet hesitant, sloppy when under pressure and too reliant on too few.
As much as Geelong looked like millionaires despite playing a young side, they were helped along by the Crows, who arrived as favoutites with the bookmakers but were never even close to the Cats.
Adelaide's movement out of the backline is a major concern: full of one-step kicks, overuse of the ball and players getting in the way of one another.
Geelong added to the woes with by pressing forward, but this is one area that needs attention and fast.
Of the young ones, Brad Crouch and Sam Kerridge showed positives to take home - Crouch for body strength and composure in congested situations, Kerridge for looking more and more like he belongs at this level.
There was a fresh southerly gushing towards Corio Bay as the match began in crisp autumn sun, but it wasn't just the wind that made the Crows look pedestrian.
You could see that it assisted the Cats when Travis Varcoe, a former Central District player, elegantly glided past a contest, received, a nonchalantly kicked it from outside 50.
But the conditions could not account for the Crows being second to the ball as Geelong cranked up their well-known drill of sharing it around and running in numbers.
It didn't help the Crows that Taylor Walker was stood by Harry Taylor, one of the best-marking defenders in the competiton, and was given a bath. Best on ground versus best to forget.
But it gave a clearer picture of what the Crows can expect as it embarks on the post-Tippett era: Walker not only receiving the standout defender, but also having other backmen drop off to help out.
The Cats ran circles around them, and late in the first quarter Geelong had 20 inside-50s to Adelaide's two.
As Crows coach Brenton Sanderson had predicted, the Cats shape as a contender again. Varcoe, who only managed one game last year because of injuries, Steven Motlop and Billie Smedt added zip to go with the sturdy contributions of Paul Chapman, James Kelly and Jimmy Bartel.
Predictably, it befell Patrick Dangerfield to take matters in his own hands. When Geelong had 31 points on the scoreboard, Adelaide none, he wrested the ball out of a contest, avoided one tackle and broke another, took off on a sprint and kicked the Crows' first. Close to 15 minutes had been played.
Gradually, the Crows worked themselves back into the match, much through the steady hands of Dangerfield, captain Nathan van Berlo, Scott Thompson, Sam Jacobs taking control in the ruck and Ben Rutten asserting himself down back.
But clearly, it was not all about the wind; the lead had grown from 42 points at half time to 46 at the long break. It only got worse from there. By three quarter time, some of the audience was already making their way out into the surrounding parklands to find something else to fill their day.
BEST: Geelong: Taylor, Kelly, Varcoe, Mackie, Bartel, Horlin-Smith, Enright. Adelaide: Dangerfield, van Berlo, Thompson, Rutten, Vince
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Alarm bells ringing for Crows
Dengan url
http://beritaandalan.blogspot.com/2013/03/alarm-bells-ringing-for-crows.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Alarm bells ringing for Crows
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar