Live: Eagles up for the fight against Crows in Adelaide

Jake Waterman sticks a massive tackle on Michalanney just before the buzzer, wins the holding the ball free kick and then launches one from 50 on a tight angle after the siren. An inspirational finish to the quarter for the Eagles, bringing the margin back to 17 points.

And that’s the least the Eagles deserve. That was one of their best halves of the season, and on another day it could be them with a 17-point lead. But the Crows are just that little bit sharper, a little more in tune and, crucially, their big boys are owning the skies.

How long can this West Coast challenge last? We’ll find out after the break.

Riley Thilthorpe missed from a free kick a few minutes ago, but this time he isn’t so obliging. Must have been a little hold or something in there, and the big man makes the most of his chance.

Somehow the lead is out to 23 points, which feels mighty harsh on West Coast on the balance of play.

Into the wind, that is a wonderful finish from Rachele. A casual set shot from right on the arc.

The Eagles are clearly winning the inside 50s and doing so much right, but they just lack the connection going forward that the Crows have. That’s the difference in the game right now.

The ball has lived at the Eagles’ end but they couldn’t fashion any real chances, but a 50 metre penalty for dissent relieved the pressure on Adelaide and got the Crows up the other end.

Milera’s centering kick found the biggest bloke out there, and big ROB finished off his work.

The Eagles went quickly through the middle and released Brockman, who saw Allen running back to goal and looked to find him.

The ball went long on the breeze and over Allen’s head, but thanks to a massive leg break bounce it evaded the post and ran through for a goal. Bad luck turns to good luck quickly for Brockman and the Eagles.

The whistle blew on a soft one deep inside Adelaide’s attacking 50 and as everyone stopped, Thilthorpe played on to a clear advantage. He dished off to Keays who slams it through.

Not sure about the free kick for a very slight nudge in the back but the Eagles had plenty of chances to kill that move before it got there.

A really bright first quarter for West Coast, whose pressure game and ability to move the ball quickly by hand saw it own large portions of that term.

But where the Crows have had an advantage is in the air, with the big boys at either end dominating. Some of that could be down to the wind, which seems to be throwing off the Eagles more than the Crows, but we will learn more on that front in the second term.

We’ve got a game on our hands at least.

And that’s what the wind can do! O’Brien was awarded a ruck free kick and the long kick in flew over everybody’s head inside 50.

Pedlar read it out the back and walked in the goal. Easy as you like!

The Eagles have started really well here. They’re kicking into a breeze but their pressure game has led to them owning territory, and now getting a bit of reward too.

Aggressive kicking from half-back found Hough in a dangerous position to launch for Waterman. The big forward makes no mistake.

It goes in the book for Harley, but Tyler Brockman was the man they all get around. His interception from Thilthorpe’s dangerous kick across goals made the chance entirely.

Brockman found Reid, who took a second to steady before snapping his first of the afternoon. Eagles up for it.

The Crows forced it forward and deep and kept it alive inside 50, just asking for someone to be clean and crafty in front of goal.

Enter the skipper. Gather, step, snap, goal.

The Eagles have started pretty well, but some really sloppy kicking has cost them at both ends so far. That exiting kick from Ginbey found Milera’s chest, and the pass to Peatling from there was a simple one.

Crows extend the lead with a major.

The Eagles forced the turnover in the middle of the ground and took off, linking by hand through Hewett, Gross, Hewett again and then Brockman before the lovely kick found Hough.

Hough makes no mistake in front of goal and the Eagles show some promising signs.

The big strong dukes of Riley Thilthorpe prevail there, outmarking two Eagles defenders. Might have been a free kick actually, but it doesn’t matter really.

Thilthorpe kicks the goal, Crows are up and running.

The sun is beaming down in Adelaide today as the Crows and Eagles lock… beaks? Wings?

Ball is in the air, let’s go.

Both sides have taken to the field, the Eagles to little fanfare and the Crows to an eruption of fireworks and smoke and music.

The players stand together for the Welcome to Country and pre-match ceremony for Sir Doug Nicholls Round.

For the first time this season, West Coast comes into this game on the back of a win. The Eagles had been threatening for a month or so now but finally got over the line against St Kilda at home last week.

This is a much tougher test though. Last year the Eagles came into this fixture off the back of some very promising results, only to be utterly dismantled by the Crows for one of their worst losses of the year. The Eagles’ worst day this season came on this ground too, a thumping by Carlton during Gather Round.

So it’s going to be tricky for the young Eagles today, though progress won’t be hard to measure.

Taylor Walker has been pulled from the Adelaide line up. The club says he has been “managed”, which is code for “against West Coast without Jeremy McGovern, we have absolutely no need to run three tall forwards so let’s give the old fella a rest”.

Sid Draper is the in for the Crows, and he will be their starting sub. Tyrell Dewar is the sub for West Coast.

Good afternoon, and welcome back to ABC Sport’s live blog coverage of the 2025 AFL season. We’ve got three games coming your way on this fine Sunday, the first of which comes from Adelaide Oval.

Adelaide and West Coast (Kuwarna and Waalitj Marawar for Sir Doug Nicholls Round) kick things off on a sunny afternoon, before we head to the MCG where Melbourne (Naarm) will play Sydney.

Then we wrap it all up with St Kilda (Euro-Yroke) and Gold Coast at Docklands, putting a lovely little bow on round 11. Big day! Keep the blog handy as we take you through all of it, start to finish.