South Adelaide kept Norwood goalless in the first half before pulling away to secure a commanding 70-point victory at Magain Stadium.

The opening minutes were fast and scrappy from both sides, with several promising chains breaking down due to poor disposal or fumbling.

Kodah Edwards showcased his skill extracting the ball from congested areas, with a clearance inside 50 setting up Kody Shortridge’s first score — a behind.

South Adelaide’s relentless pressure forced Norwood’s ball carriers into turnovers, creating multiple promising forward entries.

Repeated entries kept Norwood’s defence under siege, with Hudson Voigt benefiting from a free kick for a high tackle and converting his short-range set shot for the opening goal.

Key players Tom Simpson, Archie Van Dyk, and Kodah Edwards were prolific around the contest, heavily involved in asserting South Adelaide’s dominance over territory.

The Panthers’ lead should have been greater, but two behinds from Voigt and a narrow miss from Callan Hart kept the margin to just 10 points.

Despite the missed chances, Cameron Woods broke the drought late in the quarter, collecting a ground ball and producing a brilliant long snap.

Woods’ goal was the final score of the term, with Norwood held scoreless. At the first break, South Adelaide led comfortably by 17 points.

The Panthers started the second term with intensity. Edwards ran onto a clearance from Van Dyk and found Shortridge by hand, who nailed a shot on the run within 15 seconds.

Beyond stoppage dominance, South Adelaide created plenty from the back half, with Brady McDonald and Jake Wigzell proving prolific by foot.

Voigt again benefited from direct ball movement, marking deep inside 50 from a forward entry by Patrick Carman. The dangerous forward’s second goal extended South Adelaide’s lead to 28 points.

Carman’s desperate pressure following a stoppage in the forward pocket nearly resulted in a goal, but his snap bounced the wrong side of the post.

Norwood continued to be under pressure, with Simpson taking a contested mark from a favourable pass by Archer Price. However, his set shot from 30 metres out on a tight angle went wide.

South Adelaide’s inability to convert wasn’t hurting them but could have provided a bigger buffer.

Voigt’s day kept improving, with a strong tackle close to goal earning him a holding-the-ball free kick, which he converted for his third goal.

He could easily have added more before half-time but scuffed a shot from close range under little pressure. This miss was one of seven consecutive behinds to end the half.

The 40-point lead didn’t fully reflect South’s dominance, though their clinical defence restricted Norwood to just four behinds at the main break.

South wasted no time hitting the scoreboard in the third term, with Simpson slotting a goal on the run within 30 seconds off another centre clearance from Edwards.

Despite facing a stronger opponent, Max Savage competed gallantly in the ruck, often providing support once the ball hit the ground.

The lead increased to 52 points when Shortridge showcased his clean skills below the knees, snapping quickly from 25 metres directly in front.

Norwood finally kicked their first goal five minutes into the term, but the mountain to climb remained steep.

Their joy was short-lived as Van Dyk won the next centre clearance, leading to Carman gathering Hart’s tumbling entry and snapping truly across his body on a tight angle.

Harry Wadewitz’s clean hands initiated another promising attack, and when Van Dyk’s brilliant left-foot effort on the boundary sailed through, South Adelaide looked unstoppable.

With the margin ballooning to 58 points, Norwood responded from the next centre clearance, but celebrations were rare.

Simpson’s second goal of the afternoon capped a faultless quarter in front of goal, marking South Adelaide’s fifth goal without a miss in the term.

Norwood’s third major finished a high-scoring quarter. At the final break, South Adelaide held a commanding 50-point lead.

With the result all but decided, South refused to ease off. After a fast rebound from half-back, Voigt was trusted to finish off the hard work, but his running effort just missed for his fourth behind.

Norwood capitalised on the minor score, working the ball end-to-end to register the first goal of the final term — their last for the match.

Kai Clark’s desperate spoil on the wing denied Norwood a promising forward foray, instead creating a stoppage that led to a South Adelaide goal.

Wadewitz was the beneficiary, losing his direct opponent on the lead and marking in the pocket. His straight kick ended a run of three consecutive behinds.

As the game wound down, Edwards capped off a brilliant individual effort with a composed running goal.

Goals to Mitchell Clifton and Aiden O’Neill put the finishing touches on South Adelaide’s clinical 70-point triumph.

South Adelaide will look to build on this emphatic win when they take on finals aspirant North Adelaide at Prospect Oval on Sunday, 29 June at 12:20pm.

A scintillating nine-goal second half from South Adelaide powered a commanding 32-point victory over Norwood at Magain Stadium.

The opening stages of the first quarter were a tight arm wrestle, with the ball constantly shifting between the arcs but no scoreboard impact.

Caleb Hyland’s physical presence was prominent around the contest, laying several strong tackles and extracting the ball from congested situations to drive his side forward.

After nine scoreless minutes, the Redlegs finally broke the deadlock through a goal from Harry Goldsworthy at point-blank range.

Kody Burke had a golden chance to respond immediately, taking an overhead mark inside 50, then playing on and narrowly missing with a running shot from 25 metres out.

The miss mattered little, as Burke soon roved a forward entry from Kyan Kemp-Laundy and cleverly dribbled a pass to Nathan Flesfadar, who calmly slotted into an open goal.

South Adelaide began to build momentum and create promising scoring opportunities. Tom Meaney’s well-weighted pass found Hewston Fitzgerald, but the forward’s set shot went wide.

Despite the inaccuracy, the sheer volume of quality chances meant goals were inevitable.

Following a stoppage at half-forward, Jayce Potter received a slick handball and used his foot skills to find Hyland, who wasted no time hitting Joel Wigzell inside 50 — the forward made no mistake.

With seconds remaining in the term, Burke was in the right place at the right time when a misplaced entry from Tyler Harris fell to him, resulting in a precise short-range checkside goal.

At quarter-time, South Adelaide led by 14 points but could have extended the margin had they capitalised on missed opportunities.

Norwood started the second quarter brightly, posting the first three scores — two goals and a behind — to reduce the margin to just one point.

In the ruck, Hudson Croser provided quality service to his midfielders, while his follow-up work showcased his strength in winning clearances.

Needing a response, Kemp-Laundy’s running shot from 50 metres nearly capped a promising chain of possessions but drifted wide to the near side.

The Redlegs struggled to clear their defensive half, and the pressure resulted in another scoring chance when Meaney’s deft handball found Sam Walsh streaming forward.

Walsh’s forward entry dribbled along the ground, but Robert Jones’ clean pick-up below the knees provided an opportunity for Campbell-Kearney, who shrugged off a tackler and hit the post for a behind.

Campbell-Kearney made amends shortly after, converting a tight-angle set shot to extend South’s lead to eight points.

Defensively, South Adelaide remained resolute. Riley Watchman, Dale Shearer and Logan Edwards worked tirelessly deep in defence to deny Norwood’s leading forwards easy opportunities.

The closing stages of the half featured goals from both sides, with Wigzell’s second a timely response to Joseph Nak’s snap moments earlier.

At halftime, South Adelaide’s lead was a slender seven points, with the game finely poised.

South Adelaide started the third quarter perfectly, with Kemp-Laundy slotting a brilliant long-range set shot near the boundary to spark his side.

Meaney and Hyland continued their strong form, leading clearances and often igniting forward attacks.

South’s dominance began to reflect on the scoreboard, with forward pressure resulting in Fitzgerald marking a failed exit and calmly converting from the set shot.

Potter’s ability to open up the ground from half-back was a highlight, as the rebounding defender used his foot skills to find teammates in dangerous positions.

Kemp-Laundy proved hard to contain in the forward line, gathering a ground ball in the pocket and nearly dribbling the ball through from the boundary.

A contested spoil from Flesfadar created a turnover at half-forward, and after several quick handballs, he delivered a forward entry that found Wigzell in the goal square.

Though the umpire advised that Meaney had been awarded a free kick, the goal stood, extending South’s lead to 25 points.

Bailey James showed several promising moments between the arcs, using his work rate to provide a crucial link in South’s many attacking chains.

The game was slipping from Norwood’s grasp, but they finally ended a nearly 10-minute scoring drought.

However, the joy was short-lived as goals to Fitzgerald and Wigzell soon put the contest firmly back in South’s favour. At the final break, South Adelaide held a healthy 33-point lead.

Needing a minor miracle to pull off an upset, Norwood started the last quarter positively, kicking the opening goal to give themselves hope.

The margin could have been reduced further when Goldsworthy marked at the top of the goal square on a 45-degree angle, but his snap hit the post for a behind.

South Adelaide made Norwood pay for the miss, going coast-to-coast through the middle, with Harris eventually finding Shearer on the lead.

Often seen in defence, Shearer has showcased his forward craft in recent weeks. His set shot from 25 metres straight in front was never in doubt.

Shearer doubled his tally minutes later, intercepting a handball in the goal square following a stoppage and slotting an easy goal to extend South’s lead to a match-high 39 points.

Norwood kicked the next two goals to reward their effort, but the clock was against them.

The comeback was sealed when Wigzell snapped his fourth goal from close range, followed by Jones’ first goal of the match to cap off a brilliant team performance.

As the siren sounded, South Adelaide’s 32-point win snapped a two-game losing streak and lifted them to second on the ladder.

South Adelaide will look to strengthen their premiership aspirations when they face fellow finals contender North Adelaide at Prospect Oval on Sunday, 29 June at 10:00am.