Adelaide overcame the loss of two players to head injuries to thump Port Adelaide by 58 points in a lopsided AFL grudge match on Saturday night.
The Crows lost Kurt Tippett and Shaun McKernan but were never challenged by their home town rivals, winning 17.14 (116) to 8.10 (58).
Adelaide, with Ricky Henderson kicking six goals and ruckman Sam Jacobs almost setting an AFL record for hit-outs, kept pace with the ladder leaders – now one of four clubs with 11 wins.
Port goalsneak Paul Stewart booted four goals against the Crows, who lost key forward Tippett after a head clash midway through the opening term.
McKernan was substituted seven minutes into the second quarter, suffering a suspected broken jaw in a marking contest.
But the absence of the tall attacking duo failed to halt a free-scoring Adelaide, with Henderson filling the forward line void.
Tap-man Jacobs gifted his midfield silver service, recording an astonishing 61 hit outs – just two shy of Gary Dempsey’s VFL/AFL record set in 1982.
Jacobs expertly fed a relentless midfield headed by Scott Thompson, Bernie Vince and Richard Douglas who overwhelmed the Power.
Stewart’s goal smarts offered Port some brightness and midfield duo Brad Ebert and Travis Boak battled against the Jacobs-inspired tide.
But Port, still on four wins for the season, slipped three goals behind by quarter-time and never threatened.
In a match punctuated by four video reviews of scoring decisions, Adelaide claimed a five-goal advantage by halftime – making light of the losses of Tippett and McKernan.
Port rallied briefly in the third quarter to creep within 18 points before Adelaide’s Brodie Martin effectively sealed their fate.
Martin converted consecutive set shots from tight angles before Henderson potted two more majors to restore Adelaide’s ascendancy and a six-goal lead at three quarter-time.
The final term was a formality for the Crows, with Martin adding another goal to finish with three and first-gamer Tim McIntyre scoring his second, having booted a major with his first AFL kick.
