The Demons kicked 22.17 (149) to 8.5 (53) in what was its greatest ever winning margin over the Crows. The previous highest was 51.
The margin could have been much higher as Melbourne was the better side in the first half but were wasteful in front of goal, kicking 6.11.
Liam Jurrah was the main culprit with 1.4 to his name at the main break.
For all the excitement Jurrah brought, he got caught out trying to score from tight angles and the main frustration of every AFL coach, kicks for goal dribbling along the ground.
The Demons clicked into gear after half-time, booting eight goals to one in the third term to ensure the scoreboard was a more accurate representation of the contest.
They booted another eight in the final quarter but it was the third where they truly proved a point.
The subject of scrutiny for the best part of 10 days after the loss to West Coast, the Demons made plenty of emphatic statements at the MCG.
Ricky Petterd had been presenting his case for a senior game for several weeks and did not disappoint when he was finally given his chance. Petterd booted four goals to show he belongs in the senior side.
Senior players Brad Green and Aaron Davey had their leadership skills questioned after an indifferent start to the year but they made their presence felt at half-forward and half-back respectively.
And coach Dean Bailey had a point to prove of his own. While a coach's influence is hard to measure, if he was to be so harshly judged for his team's efforts in Perth, then he should be equally praised for how they bounced back this week.
The Crows had few bright spots in a bleak day. They were pulverised in the middle, with a team total of 11 centre clearances. To put that in context, Demon Brent Moloney had 10.
The only positive signs for Adelaide were the clean rebounding of half-back Matthew Jaensch and the tireless efforts of defender Graham Johncock.
The only lowlight for Melbourne was the sight of Jack Grimes on crutches after injuring his ankle in the opening minutes of the game.
Influential players
Brent Moloney stood out for Melbourne all day. His aggressive, bullocking style had no match in the opposition. He finished with 31 disposals for the day, including 21 contested possessions and 10 centre clearances. It was all you could hope for from a midfielder.
He had plenty of supply from ruckman Mark Jamar, while Colin Sylvia and Ricky Petterd booted four goals each.
What it means
The Demons aren't in the crisis that some superficial judgments from a couple of Melbourne newspapers would have us believe. Going into this week they were in seventh position. After the game they still find themselves in seventh position. But there may be fewer calls for Dean Bailey's head this week.
The Crows are also not quite in a crisis but they are in a worse predicament than the Demons. They have lost some very winnable games this season and with a young, developing list they might have to look beyond 2011 for their next finals charge.
Dream Team highlight
Colin Sylvia can do it all when he's on song. He wins his own football and can finish it off. His efforts earnt him 149 points in one of the performances of the round.
Brent Reilly was the only Crow to crack triple figures this week. Like Sylvia, he alternated between the middle and the forward line and finished with 115 points.
Next four:
Melbourne: North Melbourne (Etihad Stadium), St Kilda (Etihad Stadium), Carlton (MCG), Essendon (MCG).
Adelaide: Gold Coast (AAMI Stadium), Collingwood (Etihad Stadium), Brisbane Lions (AAMI Stadium), North Melbourne (Etihad Stadium).
What the coaches said:
Dean Bailey:
"We played well today. We tackled well and our intensity at the ball was good. Our attitude was better than it was last week. It needs to be at level for next week as well. We look forward to six days time to replicate if not the same, very close to the standard we set today."
Neil Craig:
"As good as we were last week, that's as poor as we have been in a long time. Clearly we are not the team people want us to be yet, but as disappointing as it was and it was through the whole group we need to make sure that we still keep pushing forward and we use that bad loss to make sure this group continues to grow."
The crowd:
The odds were stacked against a big turnout for this one. Mother's day, an interstate opponent and a wet preview to Melbourne's cold winter all conspired to keep the turnstiles stagnant. 19,987 mostly Melbourne supporters turned out to watch one of the best performances the Demons have provided in years.
Magic moment:
The game was still fairly even but the Demons had the upper hand in the second quarter as Jack Watts started to get a bit of momentum. He presented well, marked strongly and set up a couple of goals. But his highlight came at the 10-minute mark when he gathered the ball in the goal square and torpedoed it into the second tier for his second goal in a cathartic moment that would have at least temporarily silenced his many doubters.
Match details:
Melbourne 2.7 6.11 14.16 22.17 (149)
Adelaide 2.0 5.3 6.4 8.5 (53)
GOALS
Melbourne: Petterd 4, Sylvia 4, Jurrah 3, Watts 2, Wonaeamirri 2, Green 2, Dunn, Tapscott, Bartram, Bate, Jones
Adelaide: Tippett 3, Reilly 2, Thompson, van Berlo, McKernan
BEST
Melbourne: Moloney, Jones, Sylvia, Davey, Green, Maric, Trengove, Frawley
Adelaide: Jaensch, Reilly, van Berlo, Johncock, Schmidt
INJURIES
Melbourne: Grimes (foot)
Adelaide: Dangerfield (concussion), S. Thompson (calf), Wright (knee)
SUBSTITUTES
Melbourne: Jack Grimes (foot) replaced by Austin Wonaeamirri in the first quarter
Adelaide: Patrick Dangerfield (concussion) replaced by Jared Petrenko in the third quarter
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Stevic, Jeffery, Keating
Official crowd: 19, 987 at MCG
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of the clubs or the AFL
