Round 16, 2022
Adelaide vs Melbourne
Saturday 2 July
Venue: Adelaide Oval
Attendance: 30,702
| 1st | 2nd | 3rd | Final | |
| Adelaide | 4.0 | 6.2 | 7.4 | 10.5.65 |
| Melbourne | 5.1 | 6.3 | 9.9 | 14.10.94 |
Melbourne win by 29 points
Goalkickers: Christian Petracca 3, Ben Brown 2, Mitch Brown 2, Toby Bedford 1, Bayley Fritsch 1, James Harmes 1, Ed Langdon 1, Kysaiah Pickett 1, Tom Sparrow 1, Jack Viney 1
Milestones:
100 games
Bayley Fritsch
Even without their entire ruck division - with Max Gawn injured, Majak Daw retired, and Luke Jackson a late withdrawal with a knee complaint, Melbourne escaped unscathed. Sam Weideman acted as backup, with late inclusion Mitch Brown his deputy. Despite being outmuscled in the ruck dual, a strong performance by the Melbourne midfield delivered victory.
The visitors jumped to a three goal lead within five minutes before Adelaide fought back to level scores, only conceding the lead again in the dying seconds of the opening quarter. After a relatively high scoring nine goal term, the game then turned into a defensive struggle, with only three more goals before the half. Melbourne then kicked the first three goals of the third quarter to take a 23 point lead. A late Crows goal gave them hope, and two more at the start of the last had them within five points. Melbourne steadied to win, maintaining a game gap at the top of the ladder.
Best were Petracca, Oliver and Langdon. Mitch Brown replaced Luke Jackson in the senior side. Adam Tomlinson was an unused substitute