YESTERDAY Adelaide ultimately ran away with the match against GWS, defeating the Giants by 69 points.

However, the final scoreline did not tell the full story. The Giants got within two points of their visitors at one stage in the first term, but conceded the last nine goals of the match to ultimately fall away.

While the final scoreline might not paint a pretty picture, there was certainly a lot to love from the Giants, particularly in the first half. We take a look at some of the positives from the Giants’ game, and then ultimately what cost them in the second half.

What worked for GWS

Midfield ball movement

For perhaps the first time this season, the Giants’ ball movement through particularly the midfield was impressive. Running in waves, once they got going, either by hand or foot, momentum really started going and an attack looked ominous. If the chain was by hand, the longer handballs to a player in space made the chain even more effective.

The Giants just need to find a way to regularly get that kind of space in the midfield to be able to consistently execute them for longer in a game.

Zarlie the midfielder

Heading into the match, GWS had a huge hole in their lineup with skipper Alicia Eva forced out due to suspension, but that was perhaps a blessing in disguise because it allowed them to change things up for what turned out to be the better.

Young star Zarlie Goldsworthy is normally a forward, but had a spell in the midfield yesterday, and it gave the Giants a huge boost.

Although Eva is likely to come straight back into that midfield group, after what Goldsworthy showed yesterday, a new rotation option has certainly been presented to Giants’ coach Cam Bernasconi.

Garnett the defender

Another Giant who had a bit of a position change yesterday that proved successful was Georgia Garnett. Also normally a forward, Garnett spent some time in defence yesterday, and her strong marking ability and good reading of the play proved a very handy asset for the Giants.

What did not work for GWS

Adelaide’s defensive transition speed

One thing that really hurt the Giants yesterday was the speed of Adelaide’s defensive transition. Once Adelaide got the ball in defence, the Crows were quick to get it back up the ground and into attack, and the Giants just could not keep up.

A lot in the final quarter

The final quarter was where things really fell apart for the Giants. As fatigue started to set in, Adelaide really took advantage and left the Giants in their dust, and the young Giants were just no match for the seasoned Crows.