The Hawks led by five goals midway through the second quarter and threatened to run away with the game until emerging stars Patrick Dangerfield and Taylor Walker ignited the Crows in the third term.
Walker slotted three goals and Dangerfield two, as the home side piled on seven majors to Hawthorn's three to take an unlikely three-point lead into the final break.
Chance Bateman put the visitors back in front with the opening goal of the last term, but Dangerfield responded with a miraculous shot from the boundary line and a goal to Nathan van Berlo sealed the 16.9 (105) to 12.13 (85) win.
Adelaide looked incapable of winning the game in the first half.
Hawthorn's pressure was relentless and the home side appeared rattled, committing basic skill errors and struggling to clear the ball out of defence.
Ex-Port Adelaide midfielder Shaun Burgoyne enjoyed his AAMI Stadium homecoming, notching up 13 possessions and three goals to half time, while Sam Mitchell, Brad Sewell and Rick Ladson all found plenty of the ball.
The Crows had few winners and were forced to introduce substitute Brodie Smith into the contest in the opening 10 minutes, after Jason Porplyzia injured his troublesome shoulder in a tackle.
However, it was the home side that finished full of running.
Brent Reilly, Bernie Vince, Andy Otten, Rory Sloane and Shaun McKernan joined Walker and Dangerfield in starting the resurgence and Adelaide found the confidence and spirit it had been lacking in the opening half.
The Hawks kept coming, but the Crows, buoyed by a vocal home crowd, celebrated the 20-year anniversary of their first-ever game with another victory over the brown and gold.
Influential players
Taylor Walker had just four possessions to half time but with the help of Dangerfield turned the game in Adelaide's favour in the third term, kicking three goals. He only had one touch in the final term- a kick to register his fourth major.
Shaun Burgoyne ran riot in the first half, kicking three goals and creating turnovers with defensive pressure. He continued to win the ball in the second half, albeit with less effect, and finished the game with 23 touches and three majors.
What it means
The Crows can head into the bye next weekend full of confidence, knowing their best football is good enough to match it with a team widely tipped to reach the top four this season.
Despite the result, Hawthorn is going to be a dangerous team in 2011. The Hawks looked irresistible at half time, but failed to capitalise on their dominance on the scoreboard, with Lance Franklin (2.6) the main culprit.
Dream Team highlight
Adelaide utility Scott Stevens was a shock high-scorer, racking up 125 points for his 27 possessions and 13 marks across half-back, while Mitchell had 38 touches to finish with 123 points. Shaun McKernan also showed he could be a handy investment, scoring 83 points in only his second AFL game.
The next four
Adelaide: bye, Fremantle (AAMI), Port Adelaide (AAMI), Carlton (ETIHAD)
Hawthorn: Melbourne (MCG), Richmond (MCG), West Coast (AURORA), Geelong (MCG)
What the coaches said
Neil Craig (Adelaide)
"We made some slight changes on the night with our forward line and our ball movement, but in the end our persistence skill - and it is a skill - for such a young group… they need to remember that they've showed their cards now. With the way the defence is in the game at the moment we all need to be careful that we don't expect to play open, free-flowing football for the whole game. It's going to break open more in the second half in general terms."
Alastair Clarkson (Hawthorn)
"We had some terrible clangers. Some of our defensive efforts were quite poor. The ball went out the back far too easily and they [the Crows] got some easy goals. We had the same amount of scoring shots, but we couldn't punish them and had to work too hard for our goals."
Key match-up
Lance Franklin v Phil Davis
If Buddy had kicked straight it might have been a different story, but Davis walked away from the contest having at least broken even with the Hawthorn star. Franklin finished with two goals, but hurt his side by giving away five free kicks. Davis didn't follow Franklin up the ground, but still notched up 25 touches and showed courage to come back on after being cleaned up by Bateman.
Winning move
Dangerfield was forced to play almost exclusively as a forward when Porplyzia was subbed off, but his move into the midfield in the third term was pivotal. The young tyro picked up 10 possessions and kicked two goals to set up the stirring win.
Aesthetics
In contrast to Friday night's clash between Geelong and St Kilda, no one could complain about the visual appearance of this game. The Crows were scrappy early, but the second half was everything you could want in a game - high-scoring, free-flowing and above all, exciting.
Adelaide 1.3 4.5 11.7 16.9 (105)
Hawthorn 3.2 7.6 10.10 12.13 (85)
GOALS
Adelaide: Walker 4, Dangerfield 3, Henderson, Knights, Van Berlo 2, Vince, Porplyzia, McKernan
Hawthorn: Burgoyne 3, Franklin, Roughead, Young 2, Bateman, Osborne, Savage
BEST
Adelaide: Dangerfield, Stevens, Walker, Reilly, Davis, Van Berlo
Hawthorn: Mitchell, Burgoyne, Young, Rioli
INJURIES
Adelaide: Jason Porplyzia (shoulder)
Hawthorn: none
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Ryan, Meredith, Wenn
Official crowd: 42,536 at AAMI Stadium
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily of the clubs or the AFL.
