Jarrad Waite has made a thumping return for North Melbourne, the powerful forward booting six goals to help seal a 59-point win and end Adelaide's unbeaten start to the season.
The Kangaroos dominated play from the opening bounce, keeping the Crows scoreless in the first quarter and maintaining their lead at every break in the 22.13 (145) to 13.8 (86) victory at Blundstone Arena.
"I think it’s the fourth-highest first-quarter score in North Melbourne history and it’s really pleasing that our fans can see, with the players out on the field representing the club, that they're capable of doing something like that which is history making for us," Kangaroos coach Brad Scott said following his side’s win.
"We’ve talked all year about how bright the future looks and hopefully our supporters got a good look at it today."
It was Waite's first game since round one when he suffered a shoulder injury, but there were no signs of the ailment as the veteran forward led his team on a first-quarter rampage in Hobart.
At the first break the Roos had amassed 10 goals - three courtesy of Waite - and boasted a 64-point lead after keeping the competition frontrunners scoreless for the term.
In light drizzle the Crows returned inspired for the second term and quickly added to the scoreboard, including Eddie Betts' much-anticipated 500th goal.
But the forward was flattened on the goal line by North's Scott Thompson giving Betts a second kick at goal to immediately move to 501 goals.
Waite was North's leading goalkicker, also finishing with 22 disposals. Fellow tall forwards Ben Brown and Mason Wood booted two goals apiece for the Roos while Betts' three was the best for the Crows.
In an early scare for North, Brown left the ground midway through the first quarter following a collision with Jack Ziebell but came back early in the second term with his left shoulder heavily strapped and tried hard throughout.
Small forward Corey Wagner was called in late for North to replace Taylor Garner who was suffering hamstring soreness.
Playing his first game for the season, Wagner left the ground after just 14 minutes with an ankle complaint and played no further part in the match.
The Crows lost Tom Lynch just before half-time, concussed after a clash with Waite, but coach Don Pyke played down fears of any long-term absence for the big forward in what might be Adelaide’s only positive for the day.
"He’s fine. He came off from the concussion side of things so we’ll monitor him during the week and see whether he’ll be available," Pyke said.
"I saw (the tackle) once in replay. It looked to me like it was a tackle that ended up coming to ground. There was no free kick paid, so I won’t comment any more than that."
The result is Adelaide's first loss for the season and only North's second win from seven rounds.
MEDICAL ROOM
North Melbourne: Corey Wagner came in as a late replacement for the Kangaroos but went over on his right ankle early in the first term and spent most of the match on the bench. Ben Brown was able to overcome a serious-looking shoulder injury in the first quarter but will probably be assessed during the week and could be in doubt if there’s any structural damage and the Roos decide to err on the side of caution.
Adelaide: Tom Lynch didn’t take the field after a half-time concussion test following a heavy tackle in the second term and will be assessed during the week.
NEXT UP
North will be hoping to make it three wins on the trot when they host the underperforming Swans in the twilight fixture at Etihad Stadium next Sunday. For the Crows, it’s a return to Adelaide Oval where they’ll look to bounce back against the Demons.
NORTH MELBOURNE 10.4 12.6 17.12 22.13 (145)
ADELAIDE 0.0 5.6 9.7 13.8 (86)
GOALS
North Melbourne: Waite 6, Higgins 2, Dumont 2, Wood 2, Brown 2, Cunnington 2, Ziebell, Clarke, Turner, McDonald, Hrovat, Atley
Adelaide: Betts 3, Cameron 2, Jenkins 2, Douglas 2, Lever, Walker, Jacobs, Atkins
BEST
North Melbourne: Waite, Cunnington, Wood, Tarrant, Thompson, Gibson
Adelaide: M Crouch, Douglas, Laird, Jacobs
INJURIES
North Melbourne: Wagner (ankle)
Adelaide: Lynch (concussion)
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Chamberlain, Fleer, Mollison
Official crowd: 10,064 at Blundstone Arena
