FOR A while there, it looked like Adelaide might be on its way to re-establishing itself as a genuine premiership contender. 

The Crows were on top early in their clash with ladder leader Geelong, at the ground it's so hard to topple, GMHBA Stadium.

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Under the glare of the Friday night spotlight, it would have marked a significant victory, and when Hugh Greenwood put his side ahead by 20 points in the second term, that result seemed more than feasible. 

From there, the Cats wrestled back control. Disappointingly for Adelaide, it all started in the area they had held the ascendancy, as coach Don Pyke explained. 

"The end of that second quarter, I thought we lost our way a bit in the contest and then gave up field position," Pyke said. 

"The story in the second half was probably similar. I think the contest numbers were a bit more even but we lost critical contests and lost field position, and in the third quarter, clearances became an issue and from then, we were on the back foot." 

Rory Sloane, along with Matt and Brad Crouch, had been so influential, while Reilly O'Brien was having a significant impact. 

Geelong didn't wilt though. Led by champion Joel Selwood, who has done it time and again throughout his magnificent career, along with Tim Kelly, who has been among the best players in the AFL this year, with Mitch Duncan, Cam Guthrie and Jordan Clark also crucial, the Cats turned it around and they didn't lose control from there. 

"Our guys were probably guilty of getting too many to the contest and we didn't hold balance as well as we would have liked," Pyke said.

"We felt like we were bees to a honeypot at times, versus being able to hold on the outside. When we didn't get it done on the inside, that ball spilt out and put pressure on our backs and cost us field position." 

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Bryce Gibbs collected just 13 disposals after being recalled in a season he has been dropped three times.

"Statistically it wasn't big numbers from Bryce so I'd probably need to have a look at it in more detail to form a full opinion on it," Pyke said.

Crows co-captain Taylor Walker looked dangerous early but a ligament strain in an elbow caused discomfort.

However, he's expected to front up for next Saturday's Showdown against Port Adelaide. 

"We'd have to see how it settles down. I haven't really spoken to him in detail about how they'd assess that but he seemed, after the game, confident. Obviously it wasn't ideal but we'd expect him to be all right," Pyke said.