Adelaide AFLW coach Matthew Clarke has revealed his club raised concerns about St Kilda's predominantly white guernsey with the AFL before his side romped to a 53-point win at Norwood Oval.
Clarke admitted he had difficulty distinguishing between the mostly-white indigenous round jumpers worn by Adelaide and the Saints on Sunday but there was little doubt about the difference in class between the sides.
The high-flying Crows held St Kilda scoreless until late in the third term on their way to a 8.13 (61) to 1.2 (8) win - their first victory at their home ground since round two last season.
Clarke explained that the fixture change caused by Covid-19 border restrictions was behind the confusing blur of players which prompted many fans to take to social media to express dismay.
"The challenge there was with indigenous round, both teams were really keen to acknowledge and celebrate the round with their guernseys," Clarke said.
"Initially we were slated to play Fremantle in that game and clearly there wasn't going to be a clash there.
"We did raise it during the week. We saw the jumper and raised it with the AFL and St Kilda but ultimately they decided to proceed and I guess we'll leave it at that."
Jumper issues aside, Clarke was thrilled with the performance that improved his side's win-loss record to 4-1.
Ebony Marinoff (23 possessions and nine tackles) and Erin Phillips (21 disposals and a goal) were the standouts for the Crows, who had winners across every line.
"I thought the cohesion between our lines today was probably as well as we've done it across this season," Clarke said.
"Overall, we feel like we're in reasonable shape."
It was a dark day for St Kilda, who slipped to a 2-3 record after they recorded their lowest-ever score and suffered their largest-ever defeat.
Saints coach Peta Searle conceded it was a harsh lesson for her inexperienced group to learn.
"As I said to the girls, we're not going to get a better look at (how) to improve and get better," Searle said.
"We can't replicate this type of stuff at training.
"This is where we've got an opportunity to really grow ... it's about learning from what the game gave us today."
The scoreboard at halftime told a grim tale for the visitors, but even more damning was the lopsided 29-2 inside 50 count.
The Saints didn't manage to go inside their attacking 50 once in the second term and couldn't conjure a single possession inside forward 50 in the first half.
Kate Shierlaw ran onto a loose ball in the goal square to kick St Kilda's only major with two minutes left in the third quarter.
Australian Associated Press
