The Adelaide Crows have put on a pyrotechnic performance to start Gather Round with a bang at Adelaide Oval on Thursday night.
The Crows executed one of the most astonishing quarters of football seen in recent times as they blew the Blues away in a first quarter rampage.
The Crows smashed records as they produced a quarter of almost perfect football to lead 8.3 (51) to 2.1 (13) at quarter time.
The Crows had eight individual goal scorers and left the high-flying Blues looking out-classed.
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The Blues did climb up off the canvas in the second quarter, but the Crows headed into the half-time break with a five-goal lead.
The party started in the third quarter for the home side as the Crows extended their lead back out to 38 points and had the crowd of 47,395 rocking.
Darcy Fogarty finished with five goals, while Taylor Walker and Ben Keays booted three each and the Crows cruised to a 18.10 (118) to 9.8 (62).
The real damage was done further up the ground with Jordan Dawson (32 touches) and Rory Laird (37) tearing Carlton apart through the middle.
The Crows had earlier kicked eight goals in a first quarter for just the 12th time in the history of the club, causing anarchy in the Adelaide Oval grandstands as the inaugural Gather Round exploded.
It was a training drill at times and the Crows were clinical as they cut Carlton to shreds.
The most telling numbers were 16 clearances to eight and 42 contested possessions to 26.
The 38-point lead in one quarter of football was the biggest margin the Crows have ever had against Carlton and good enough for 10th all-time for the club.
The 8.3 (51) scoreline was also the fifth highest score the Crows have ever had in the first quarter of a match.
The footy world was lost for words.
“That was just a scary quarter of football,” Hawthorn legend Jason Dunstall said on Fox Footy.
“They were that good. I’m a little bit scared by what I saw. “It was just utter and complete domination.”
Channel 7’s Alister Nicholson said it was “breath-taking football”.
AFLW champion Daisy Pearce said on Seven it was a “clinic”.
Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes said on SEN: “This is as good as we’ve seen any team play this year”.
He earlier said: “There’s alarm bells everywhere for the Blues. This is what Adelaide can do to teams, they can rattle them”.
Kangaroos great David King said Crows coach Matthew Nicks has been underselling how good his team is.
“They’ve arrived. They’ve sent a message to the football world,” King said on Fox Footy.
“They’ve said, ‘We’re not waiting’. Even though the coach said, ‘We’re in a development phase’. He lied to us.”
ABC radio commentator Warwick Long wrote: “Sitting in disbelief. How good are the Crows”.
Former Masterchef star and footy tragic Adam Liaw said: “I can’t believe what I’m seeing
Sport journalist Matt Walsh wrote: “Carlton being picked apart with ease. Crows’ ball use sublime especially inside 50. This is a mauling”.
The Blues were earlier forced to make an emergency last-minute selection change after key defender Mitch McGovern was scratched moments before the first bounce.
The Blues confirmed just five minutes before match started that their important defender had suffered a calf injury in the warm-up.
Crows fans had their hearts in their hearts in their mouths after Carlton kicked the first three goals of the second quarter to close the margin to just 18 points.
