So, with a match with everything riding on it, it pays to look at it from every angle.

Last time we met - Round 3, 2012
Hawthorn 5.3 10.7 15.9 21.14 (140)                 
Adelaide 4.3 6.8 9.10 12.12 (84)         
 
Goals: Hawthorn - Breust 3, Franklin 3, Suckling 2, Hale 2, Lewis 2, Rioli 2, Whitecross, Burgoyne, Cheney, Gunston, Osborne, Shiels, Mitchell
Adelaide - Tippett 3, Callinan 3, Lynch 2, Porplyzia, Doughty, Vince, Reilly
 
Best: Hawthorn - Gibson, Lewis, Franklin, Whitecross, Suckling, Guerra, Breust
Adelaide - Dangerfield, Thompson, Tippett, Callinan, Doughty, Jacobs
 
Crowd: 33,524 at the MCG

The Hawks inflicted the Crows’ first loss of the season on the back of a powerful performance after quarter time. The Hawks kicked 16 goals to eight after the first break, combining attack with stingy defence. Josh Gibson was Taylor Walker’s master and provided great drive off half back with 30 disposals. Lance Franklin and Luke Breust were dangerous up forward.

For Adelaide, Kurt Tippett proved a handful with three goals, while Patrick Dangerfield (27 disposals) and Scott Thompson (25) were again good in the middle. But the ever-improving Crows were no match for a seasoned and determined Hawthorn in the Round 3 clash.

Looking ahead

While many were predicting a straight sets finals exit, the Crows showed that not only have they improved as a collective, their spirit, determination and self-belief has added a new component to its 2012 model.

The Crows found a way to defeat a gallant Fremantle at AAMI Stadium, and enters Saturday’s preliminary final with the confidence that it can match it with the best sides in the league. The Crows, after all have made it to the final four.

Brenton Sanderson’s men possess the key characterises that make up a good side, they’re strong in the contest, have a midfield that combines the ability to win the ball inside with devastating attacking nous when it gets the ball in space.

Interestingly though, both Adelaide and Hawthorn are ranked equal first in the competition for clearances, an average of 41 apiece per game. That adds spice to an already important midfield battle, with both sides relying on the ability to have the match played in its forward half.

Scott Thompson and Patrick Dangerfield lead the way for the Crows in the middle. The pair epitomise the Adelaide brand, hard in close and damaging in attack. They top the Crows list for disposals this season, with 396 and 375 respectively. Dangerfield averages 27 possessions, three clearances, three tackles and a goal per game.

On average, Thompson gathers 29 possessions per game, three clearances, five tackles and despite having kicked just 10 goals this season, he has proven over the course of his career that he is more than capable of kicking multiple goals - he has a career high of six against Richmond in 2008.

The Adelaide defence too, is a strong one led by veterans Ben Rutten and Michael Doughty. The Crows conceded just 100 more points than the Hawks during the home-and-away season, with 1833 to 1733. A big blow though, is the injury to Daniel Talia who could have been headed for the colossal job on Lance Franklin.

Up forward, the Crows’ other strength is their dangerous forward set up with power forwards Taylor Walker and Kurt Tippett. Their strengths as big men is their versatility, and that, combined with small forwards Jason Porplyzia, Richard Douglas and Graham Johncock, makes it a dangerous mix.

The Crows were the second highest scoring team (behind only the Hawks) across the home-and-away season, averaging 110 points per game. The Hawthorn defence will have its work cut out for it, but it will be an intriguing battle given Alastair Clarkson’s defence’s strength is its versatility with Josh Gibson, Ben Stratton, Grant Birchall and Matt Suckling are all athletic and versatile players with the ability to both attack and defend.

Possible key match-ups

Sam Mitchell v Scott Thompson/Bernie Vince/Rory Sloane: The Hawks clearance king could go head-to-head with one of the Adelaide midfield guns. In the qualifying final against Collingwood, Mitchell was tagged by Jarryd Blair, but that didn’t have any affect on the onballer, who still managed 12 clearances for the match. The Crows could be better served in sending one of their  prime movers to the Hawks no. 5.

Patrick Dangerfield v Brad Sewell/Liam Shiels/Xavier Ellis: Shiels has done some tagging jobs this season for Alastair Clarkson, with particular success on North Melbourne’s Brent Harvey. Sewell too could be in contention for the Crows’ dynamo after his lock down job on Port Adelaide’s Hamish Hartlett was a success. Sewell was best on ground that day and kept Hartlett to 12 possessions. Ellis too ould be thrown the job by Clarkson after spending time on Heath Shaw on the qualifying final.

Taylor Walker v Ryan Schoenmakers/Josh Gibson: Despite Gibson having the job on Walker in Round 3, the Crows’ big man is the in-form player of the Crows’ forward pair. His athleticism and goal sense makes him a dangerous prospect, as does the fact that his confidence levels are sky high. He booted five goals against the Dockers last week to get the Crows over the line.

Kurt Tippett v Josh Gibson/Ryan Shcoenmakers: Despite being arguably out of form, Tippett still poses a threat to the Hawks and will need to be opposed to one of the Hawks’ key position defenders. Like any good forward pair, if one is having a down day, the other will step up and take the game by the scruff of the neck.

Lance Franklin v Ben Rutten/Sam Shaw: With Talia going down against the Swans in week one of the finals, it leaves the Crows with little choice to stand the Hawks’ spearhead. Rutten is the logical man to stand Buddy, but his athleticism and versatility could be a concern for the Crows. Franklin booted three goals in the Round 3 match.

Cyril Rioli v Michael Doughty/Brodie Smith: Doughty has spoken publicly about wanting the job on Rioli, but that has yet to be confirmed by Sanderson. The fleet of foot Smith too could be asked to stand the Hawthorn x-factor, matching him for pace.


Clinton Young: “They’ve got a good midfield, but they’ve got good players all over the ground so we’ll have to be on our guard because they’ve had a good season.

“Probably their midfield mix (is their strength). Players like Dangerfield and Rory Sloane have probably had their best seasons so we’ve got to be mindful of them. But, our midfield has had a good season too, so hopefully we can play our best footy.”

Jordan Lewis: “They’re a quality side. They finished second so they’ve had a fantastic season and really earned the right to play in a prelim final.

“They were challenged early and their good players stood up when they needed to. We’ll treat them with the highest respect.

“The midfield battle, whoever wins that, the game is played in their half. They’ve got great depth so not only do we concentrate on one player or two players, you’ve got to concentrate on the whole collective group.”


Adam Simpson: “The thing about Adelaide is they’re very consistent with it, and quite often they’re winning that (midfield) battle every week.

“They’re number one for clearances and number one for contested ball - they’re the indicators we look at for finals footy.

“They stand up pretty well, so it’ll be a bit of a battle there.”


Kade Answerth on twitter: “I reckon Dangerfield and Thompson feeding the ball to each other is dangerous and (Taylor) walker needs to be shut down.”

Angry Canadian on twitter: “The key to beating the Crows is what every coach says - be first and be harder at the ball than your opponent, every time.”

Simon Whelan on twitter: “Just play the Hawthorn brand football and let the Crows worry about our dangerous 22 players.”

Lachlan Dimech on twitter: “Clarko said it 12 months ago... Be good enough and hard enough for long enough... Just play the Hawthorn way!”

Aaron Gadd on twitter: “Control the centre clearance and stop them quickly getting the ball in long forward.”





Young, Mitchell, Hodge, Roughead on Adelaide