Marks inside 50 are the most correlated stat with goals in the AFL. That’s even above conversion and scoring shots per inside 50 this season.
See below for the current leaders after Round 8 for marks inside attacking forward 50.
The best way to create marks inside 50’s is to win lots of centre clearances.
One of the knocks on Adelaide heading into this season was whether or not their midfield could stand up with the competition’s best.
In the past two weeks they have been outplayed and one area this is really evident is in the center clearances which as we know is the stat most likely to result in a mark inside 50.
The following is how Adelaide has fared against their opponents in center clearances this year.
Round 1: Crows 18- opponent 18 in a win
Round 2: 15-13 in a win
Round 3: 13-15 in a win
Round 4: 17-22 in a win
Round 5: 15-21 in a win
Round 6: 16-13 in a win
Round 7 11-23 in a loss
Round 8: 6-18 in a loss
One of main reasons for the poor form in the middle has been the back-to-back quiet weeks for premier Crows midfielder Rory Sloane (video below).
Sloane has been heavily tagged in recent weeks and will be out to make amends in his 150th AFL game this Saturday night against the Brisbane Lions.
Crows Coach Don Pyke has made 3 changes after horror fortnight, but one man he’d love to see find some footy is heavily tagged Rory Sloane. pic.twitter.com/lX2tpwqLxK
— 7 News Adelaide (@7NewsAdelaide) May 18, 2017
The Crows were very poor over the last fortnight in center clearances but still broke even at the stoppages.
Suggesting that center clearances are more important in terms of scoreboard impact than a regular clearance from a contest around the ground.
Adelaide have a -22% differential this year at center clearances compared to Melbourne who are +31% vs opponents.
That’s a credit to the likes of Jack Viney, Clayton Oliver and the other Demon inside mids considering they’ve been beaten in the ruck -39% in the absence of Spencer and Gawn.