Adelaide has survived a late scare from a fast-finishing Hawthorn in a remarkably high-scoring affair at Marvel Stadium.

While Adelaide had the ascendancy right from the start, goals flowed as both sides displayed accuracy that belied their bottom-of-the-table standing in the 16.6(102) to 13.5(83) contest.

Three early goals gave the Crows a handy buffer as both sides traded goals, until the Hawks booted three goals in quick succession to briefly wrestle back the lead midway through the third quarter.

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It didn’t take long for Adelaide to steady the ship though, booting two quick goals to take back momentum heading into the final change.

A late surge from Hawthorn brought the margin back down to just one point, before Adelaide countered with three late goals to put the game out of the Hawks’ reach.

For the Hawthorn, Tom Mitchell had 28 touches and nine tackles, while Jaeger O’Meara managed eight tackles of his own to go along with his eight clearances and 23 disposals. Mitch Lewis booted three goals.

For the Crows, Taylor Walker booted four goals while Darcy Forgarty and Elliott Himmelberg kicked two apiece. Rory Laird was also prolific, racking up 36 touches and booted two goals.

Brodie Smith is known for his long-range kicking, but even he would be impressed with his stunning 70 metre bomb against the Hawks in the first term. Smith was well inside the centre square when he took the ball from a congested pack and delivered a missile towards goal off a step. The ball only needed to bounce once before sailing through the big sticks for one of the goals of the year.  

Veteran subs come on late

Amid ongoing debate this season around whether young players should make their debut as the medical sub, Alastair Clarkson and Matthew Nicks decided to go the other direction on Saturday night, giving sub duties to veterans David Mackay and Shaun Burgoyne. The duo combined for 645 games heading into the game and in the end it took until the fourth quarter for both to be used, with Burgoyne and Mackay replacing James Cousins and Lachlan Murphy respectively.

ADELAIDE         6.1      9.1     12.4     16.6 (102)
HAWTHORN      4.1      6.4     10.4     13.5 (83)

GOALS
Adelaide: Walker 4, Fogarty 2, Murphy 2, Laird 2, Himmelberg 2, Lynch, Smith, Keays, McHenry
Hawthorn: Lewis 3, Phillips 2, Worpel, Koschitzke, Moore, O'Brien, Breust, Mitchell, Brockman

BEST
Adelaide: Laird, Keays, Walker, Seedsman, O'Brien
Hawthorn: Mitchell, O’Meara, Worpel, Moore, Howe    

INJURIES
Adelaide: Murphy (ankle)
Hawthorn: Cousins                

SUBSTITUTES
Adelaide: David Mackay (replaced Murphy)
Hawthorn: Shaun Burgoyne (replaced Cousins)