The Crows were unable to cope with the manic pressure from the Tigers,who outscored them by almost 10 goals in the final three quarters.

The Tigers smashed them in the contested possession count and when they tackled they made it count. The Crows were rattled and jumping at shadows,lacking the poise to move the ball with the fluency that had made them the most potent side of the past six months.

The vaunted trio of Taylor Walker,Eddie Betts and Josh Jenkins produced just three goals between them. Jack Graham,in the spirit of Shane Ellen for Adelaide 20 years earlier,matched that by himself.

There was no player with as much influence as Brownlow Medallist Dusty Martin,who wasted few of his 28 possessions. He was part of a dominant midfield that smothered the Crows.

Bachar Houli played the best match of his career,setting up numerous counter-attacks with his incisive left boot. Jack Riewoldt overcame three early misses to be the most influential forward on the ground.

The Crows had few good players though Matt Crouch,with 35 touches,could hold his head high.

Tigers fans who had been waiting 37 years for this day were not given the start they wanted but they would have been emboldened by what they saw in the next 15 minutes.

The pressure that has been a Tiger trademark came to the fore. Kane Lambert's bring-down tackle,one of several that earned free kicks,set up their first.

The Crows'best period in the second coincided with Rory Sloane's early dominance. He had eight touches in the first 13 minutes of the quarter when they wasted chances but only two more until the break. If not for Alex Rance,the Crows would have broken clear.

When Richmond's turn came,they worked the Crows over. Goals were initially hard to come by but by trapping the ball in their forward half they were turning the heat on Adelaide.

From a glass-half-full view for Adelaide,they had just played some of their worst football for the season but were only 10 points down so they had plenty of room for improvement.

So too did the Tigers. The start to the third term,the one they call the"premiership quarter",was yellow and black manna. Try these numbers on for size.

In a breathtaking first 10 minutes,the Tigers won a lopsided possession count 32-10,had seven of the first eight inside-50 entries and stretched their lead to 28 points. The Crows were not at breaking point,they had already been broken.

Grand final votes

Dustin Martin (Richmond) 9

Bachar Houli (Richmond) 8

Dion Prestia (Richmond) 8

Alex Rance (Richmond) 7

Jack Riewoldt (Richmond) 7