Adelaide: The Western Bulldogs were brave, they were willing, but just lacked that touch of class that the competition’s top-shelf contenders possess.
In a nutshell, the Bulldogs’ 22-point elimination final loss to Adelaide was a microcosm of their 2026 season.
Their evening couldn’t have begun more horribly when defender Michael Sellwood was concussed by a stray football during the warm-up.
Their backline was summarily rejigged, their midfield – piloted brilliantly by Ed Richards and Joel Freijah – had a huge say in proceedings, but it was ultimately their forward efficiency (or lack thereof) that cost them a semi-final berth.
The Dogs chalked up repeat entry after repeat entry, especially early, with the Crows hemmed inside their defensive-50 at the river end. But the visitors just couldn’t make Adelaide pay – not early when they had all the ascendancy, and not at the start of the final term when they looked as though they had discovered a second wind to roll over the Crows.
In the end, it was a familiar finish for Luke Beveridge and his Bulldogs.
“We unfortunately lacked a bit of polish,” Beveridge said.
“We couldn’t convert or complete some of our prime opportunities at different times.
“On the flipside, we were giving them their opportunities too close.”
Meanwhile, for the Crows and coach Matthew Nicks – who entered the match with more noise than necessary surrounding his future – the proverbial monkey is well and truly off the back.
Adelaide notched their first finals victory since 2018 to lock in a semi-final date with the Brisbane Lions at the Gabba next Saturday night.
“We can’t wait – we actually cannot wait to get up there,” said Nicks, who received a booming ovation from the 51,370-strong crowd every time his broad-smiling face flashed on the big screen in the fourth quarter.
“Our goal is to play for a month. We’re one down, and we’ve got three to go.
“I think it comes on the back of, 12 months ago, going through a fair bit of pain.”
Izak Rankine, who missed last year’s finals while serving a suspension for directing a homophobic slur at an opponent, was masterful, while Josh Worrell played the game of his life behind the footy – racking up an AFL finals record 19 intercept possessions.
After a topsy-turvy first half, the Dogs looked out of energy and options following a goalless third term, before suddenly bursting to life with three goals in five minutes early in the fourth.
With the scores level and the visitors boasting all the momentum, Aaron Naughton soared for a spectacular mark for a shot at goal straight in front.
A third-straight Crow choke in a final was on the cards.
But then Naughton let them off the hook, hitting the post for the third time to give the Bulldogs the lead by just that margin – one point.
From that moment, the Crows wouldn’t be denied.
Their big three forwards – all of whom had been held in relative check on a night favouring smaller crumbing types – stepped up in the crunch.
Riley Thilthorpe, Taylor Walker – playing at Adelaide Oval for the last time – and Darcy Fogarty went bang-bang-bang in front of goal.
And then there was that man Rankine.
At long last playing the first final of his burgeoning career, he showed he has the capacity to be “Mr September” – much like a former Crow wearing the iconic No.23 jumper, the incomparable Andrew McLeod.
Rankine put an exclamation point on a wonderful night by conjuring an incredible crumbing finish from the south-western pocket, before Josh Rachele added a fifth-straight goal for the fast-finishing Crows, pouring some more icing on a sweet-tasting cake.
Despite bowing out at the elimination final stage for the third time in the past five years, Beveridge feels his team is tracking in the right direction.
“I believe the boys have come a long way, and it’s a good platform for the future,” he said.
“It seems like it’s one that got away … we did a lot right, we were just not good enough tonight.
“It’s a bitter pill when you know you can measure up, but you ultimately come away without the chips.”
Freijah, one of the Dogs’ best against Adelaide, agrees that the future is rosy at Whitten Oval.
“There’s a really strong bond of characters within this team,” he said.
“As a group and club, we’ve had some challenges this year with injuries and guys being out.
“I’m proud of us as a group. Although this was a disappointing night, we’re definitely going in the right direction, and I’m optimistic about what we can do going forward.”
That future could include Port Adelaide superstar Zak Butters, who announced after the home-and-away season his intention to leave the Power and return home to Victoria.
The Bulldogs will in the coming days, and weeks, ramp up their pitch to Butters, who supported the Dogs and idolised Marcus Bontempelli while growing up in Darley.
An invitation to have a hit with some of the Bulldogs’ keen golfers could be just the trick in enticing Butters, a regular at Glenelg Golf Club throughout his time in South Australia.
“There are a few handy golfers who go pretty well, like Oskar Baker, Bailey Dale and Timmy English,” Freijah said.
“Zak’s an awesome player with real integrity in his game. He’s one of the stars of the competition.
“We’ll see what happens over the trade period, and we’ll go from there.”
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