Norwood's mammoth third quarter put the competition on notice, Glenelg and Sturt claimed important wins and several Mid-Season Draft hopefuls put in a superb final audition.
Read all about it in this week's SANFL wrap.
West Adelaide 13.9.(87) def North Adelaide 8.8.(56)
West Adelaide took a major step towards avoiding the wooden spoon for the first time in six years after claiming the scalp of North Adelaide on Saturday.
The Bloods have now overtaken North in sixth place after their third win of the season, one that shows just how far they have come under coach Adam Hartlett.ย
After a tight tussle for most of the first half, the Bloods kicked away just before half-time and continued the job after the main break, kicking nine of the last 11 goals of the game.
West Adelaide's emerging midfield brigade showed what it is capable of, humbling their more seasoned opponents at the stoppages and consistently gaining first possession.
Young dynamo Kobe Ryan was outstanding once again, collecting 25 disposals, seven clearances and five inside 50s, while Sam Frost enjoyed a stellar afternoon with 24 disposals and four clearances.ย
Brady Searle again showed what a valuable addition he has been to this side, amassing 21 disposals, nine tackles, five clearances and a goal.
Midfielder Joel Stevens spent more time with his brother Ned in the forward line as the siblings combined for seven goals, while wingman Isaac Johnson also chipped in with two.
Tom Morrish made an immediate impact upon his return to the team, finding plenty of the ball as a rebounding defender and starting plenty of attacks from the half-back line.
Key defender Darcy Minchella continued his fine start to the season, keeping North big man Mitch Harvey to just one goal, while Harvey Bock completely blanketed the dangerous Nigel Lockyer and restricted him to only four disposals and one goal.
For North Adelaide, Campbell Combe's commitment was unwavering, tallying 21 disposals and six tackles, while Cody Raak played his best game for his new club, finding 29 disposals and eight rebound 50s.
Captain Alex Spina led from the front with his 26 disposals and seven rebound 50s, while Ewan Mackinlay showed plenty of signs in kicking two goals.
Central District 8.9.(57) def by Norwood 16.9.(107)
A stunning 11-goal third quarter helped propel Norwood to a thumping 50-point win over Central District at Elizabeth on Saturday.
Holding a slender 12-point lead at the main break, the Redlegs produced the most potent quarter of football by any team this season to take a massive 82-point lead into the last break.
While the Bulldogs did well to put some respectability into the scoreboard with five unanswered goals in the final quarter, Norwood had long since put the cue in the rack to claim their seventh successive victory to start the season.
Despite their undefeated start to the season, questions have lingered around the Redlegs' scoring capacity, but the devastating third term display has put many of those questions to bed.
Their third quarter score of 11.5.(71) was their equal second highest total of any game this season on its own, as the 'Legs breached the ton for the first time this season.
After a relatively even first half, Norwood dominated every aspect of the game in the decisive quarter, winning inside 50s 18-2 and keeping the ball in their half for 96% of the term.
Still missing reigning Magarey medallist Harry Grant, the Bulldogs were given a midfield lesson during this period, as the Redlegs continually won the ball out of the middle and created quality chances inside 50.
The forwards were only too happy to cash in on the opportunity, with big man Connor McLean kicking three in the term while returning skipper Jacob Kennerley booted two as he played largely inside 50.
Harry Boyd enjoyed another field day in the ruck, feasting on first-game ruckman Harvey Howe and the inexperienced Beau Thomas to finish with 42 hitouts, 24 disposals and nine clearances.
Baynen Lowe's move into the midfield is proving a masterstroke as he continues to impress in the new role, winning 27 disposals and six clearances in an eye-catching display.
Billy Cootee (23 disposals, six clearances and a goal) and Mitch O'Neill (28 disposals and five clearances) were industrious through the midfield.
Pierce Seymour was impassable in defence, taking a game-high 10 marks, as was state defender Tom Donnereley, who restricted the dangerous Aiden Grace to just two goals.
The Redlegs received plenty of drive from their running half-backs, with Cooper Murley, Alastair Lord and Matt Ling all providing important run out of defence that set up much of Norwood's deadly ball movement.
Up front, Connor McLean bagged a game-high four goals and showed his ability both in the air and on the ground, while Finn Heard and Izak Twelftree both showed plenty as marking options.
On a dark day for the Doggies, several players stood out and toiled away tirelessly, including Kyle Presbury, who amassed 30 disposals and five clearances.
Kai Pudney enjoyed more midfield minutes and collected 20 disposals and six clearances, while Kade Ditmarr (seven clearances and 11 tackles) provided some toughness at the contest.
State defender Brinn Little worked overtime to keep big man Jackson Callow to just a goal, while Rhett Montgomerie was another bright spot in his return to the Bulldogs' line-up, showing excellent judgement in the air to take seven marks from 21 disposals.ย
South Adelaide 17.15.(117) def Port Adelaide 7.2.(44)
South Adelaide chalked up its first win of the season in dominant fashion as they cast aside Port Adelaide in a 73-point rout at Noarlunga.
The winless Magpies are now languishing at the bottom of the ladder with a percentage of just 36 after conceding their third consecutive triple-figure score.
The game was as good as over by quarter time as the Panthers piled on six goals to two and scored from their first seven inside 50s.
South dominated just about every facet of the game, winning disposals by 106, clearances by 12 and inside 50s by 26, yet still had eight more tackles, highlighting their intent on both sides of the ball.
Kobe Mutch (32 disposals and seven clearances), Hayden Sampson (25 disposals and a goal) and Ollie Davis (27 disposals and eight tackles) took complete control of the midfield battle and continually won first possession for their team.
Forwards Liam Fitt (five goals) and Eamon Wilkinson (four goals) caused constant headaches for the inexperienced Magpies defence, while Harvey Lambert kicked three goals in a dream debut for the 20-year-old Panthers local.
Charlie Duncan was deservedly named the breakthrough player of the round after finding a game-high 31 disposals, seven marks and a goal.
One bright spot for the Magpies was the successful return from injury for ruckman Ivan Soldo, who went unscathed after playing limited minutes.
Other AFL listed players Quinton Narkle, Ollie Lord and Trent McKenzie also got through without injury.
Francis Evans put his hand up for AFL selection, moving into the midfield and racking up 21 disposals, five clearances, six inside 50s and a goal.
Aiden Turner was another positive for Port Adelaide, collecting 17 disposals and two goals, while Tom Clurey was steady in defence as he tallied 21 disposals and 10 marks.
Sturt 15.12.(102) def Adelaide Crows 6.5.(41)
Sturt easily swept aside Adelaide by 61 points at Unley on Saturday to retain their place in the SANFL top five after seven rounds.
Inaccuracy from the Double Blues kept the Crows in the game in the first half - at one stage Sturt were 4.8 to 2.0 in the second quarter - as numerous chances went begging.
With the Crows hanging on by a thread at the last break, Sturt finally broke the game open in the last, kicking six goals to two and earning some valuable percentage.
While Sturt's defence has been rock solid to start this season, it was their offence that flourished against the Crows, breaching the ton for the first time since Round 2.
After failing to capitalise in front of goal against Central District in Round 6, Josh Hone enjoyed a massive day in front of the sticks to boot six goals in a devastating display of football.
Often used as the deepest forward, Hone was lethal both in the air and on the ground, taking two contested marks and making countless searching leads.
Tom Lewis returned to the lineup and made a huge difference, claiming 27 disposals, 11 tackles and seven clearances in a typically brutal showing.
Will Snelling was superb around the stoppages, finding 29 disposals and a clever goal roved from a pack in the forward pocket.
Joel Thiele (22 disposals, nine tackles and a goal) was influential throughout, as was skipper James Battersby (25 disposals and eight tackles) and Jared Dakin (19 disposals and five inside 50s).
Casey Voss (29 disposals and nine tackles) and Will Coomblas (16 disposals and three rebound 50s) carried on their sublime form from last week's state game, proving dangerous weapons on the half-back line.
Despite another loss, Crows fans should be heartened by the performances of some of their AFL-listed players who continue to push for senior selection.
Emerging midfielder Zac Taylor put in another solid performance to finish with 23 disposals, nine clearances and seven tackles.
Kieran Strachan was excellent against the dual ruck threat of Lachie Burrows and Daniel Fahey-Sparks, amassing 48 hitouts, seven clearances and seven inside 50s in a tireless effort.
Will Hamill provided plenty of run and carry out of defence with his 18 disposals and seven rebound 50s, while Luke Pedlar returned from injury without incident and played limited minutes in the forward line.
Top-up player Steve Burton out of South Gawler enjoyed a terrific SANFL debut, with the mature-ager adding plenty of grunt to finish with 11 tackles and four clearances on the day.
Woodville-West Torrens 10.7.(67) def by Glenelg 11.12.(78)
Glenelg withstood everything Woodville-West Torrens could throw at them to chalk up an important road win that sees them re-enter the SANFL top three.
A fast start from the Tigers that saw them kick the first three goals of the contest proved to be the difference as neither team could break away after quarter time.
With captain Joe Sinor a late out after injuring his hamstring in the state game against Western Australia last week, the Eagles were thrashed in the contest early, losing clearances 12-2 in the first term that helped the Tigers gain early momentum.
Things evened up after quarter time and the Eagles mounted several chargers throughout the afternoon, including kicking three goals in four minutes in the third term to reduce the deficit to 10 points, but Glenelg steadied with every challenge.
Matthew Allen played a starring role in the win for Glenelg, collecting 26 disposals and three goals in another standout display, while Lachie Hosie made a superb return from injury to boot four goals in a typically mercurial performance.
Matthew Snook (24 disposals, nine clearances and nine tackles) and Corey Lyons (five clearances and six inside 50s) were powerful ball winners at the contest.
The unheralded Alex Martini played an excellent tagging role on James Rowe and also had an influence with ball in hand with 22 disposals, five clearances and a goal.
Max Proud was terrific in defence, amassing 24 disposals and 10 marks as he spent time clamping down on Patrick Weckert and Troy Menzel, keeping both players relatively quiet.
Darcy Bailey was instrumental in the decisive first quarter, racking up 10 touches in this term alone to finish with 26 and provide plenty of drive from half-back.
Will Gould played one of his best games since returning to Tigerland, playing as an undersized ruck against Jarrad Redden, working off the Eagles' big man away from stoppage to get involved in the Tigers' attacking forays.
Despite being on the wrong side of the result, the Eagles had plenty of contributors as well, including a couple of mid-season draft hopefuls.
Fresh off his first state game, Luke Beecken was sent to play on Hosie early in what became an intriguing match-up between two fierce competitors.
Beecken won a crucial one-on-one contest in the back pocket to show his defensive capabilities, but after Hosie kicked three goals in the first half, Beecken was moved to play a more attacking role after the break where he thrived in collecting 28 disposals.
Despite receiving some attention from Proud early, teenage forward Weckert showed plenty as he made repeated leads and took several strong marks down the line.
Connor Ballenden (three goals) broke away from Glenelg key defender Austin Kitschke to have a bigger impact on the game after half-time, while veteran Matthew Goldsworthy (three goals) showed great composure and made good decisions with ball in hand.
Jack Firns moved onto Hosie after half-time and restricted him to one goal in a close-checking role, while Adam D'Aloia (21 disposals and four clearances) and Riley Knight (23 disposals, six inside 50s and six clearances) were both important midfield contributors.
