Some days, it doesn't pay to get out of bed. Kade Kolodjashnij may have felt like that at the end of the first quarter against Adelaide. In the defensive goal square, lying on the ground, with Troy Menzel's boot bearing down on his hand, he rushed the ball through. Appallingly, the umpire penalised him. Menzel kicked the Crows' seventh.

Of course, it wouldn't have made any difference to the overall result, with the Crows waltzing away from the Gold Coast Suns with a 67-point win. But it was the sort of ill fortune that saps the energy and fight from a struggling team, up against a premiership contender with an appetite for destruction.

They were already fighting with an arm tied behind their backs. Last year, a bright start to the season unravelled for the Suns with a five-week suspension to defender Steven May, now co-captain. May is out with a hamstring injury, and fellow tall defender Rory Thompson was missing, too.

For the Suns to have any chance, their midfield had to bring their absolute best against the Crows. Gary Ablett had to produce the sort of vintage game that it's no longer fair to expect on cue. He was the Suns' best player, and the main reason the Suns broke even at the clearances - he finished with eight.

But once the ball was on the outside, it was game over. Out-tackled and out-worked, or exposed for lack of skills, the Suns coughed up the ball and the Crows, apart from a wasteful patch in the second quarter, were ruthless. They didn't rely on Tex Walker or Eddie Betts either, finishing with 13 individual goalkickers.

It is a devilish set-up for opposing sides to contain. Former Giant Curtly Hampton was especially slippery early and kicked the first two goals; Charlie Cameron kicked a couple more; Tom Lynch kicked three and could have had six. Walker and Betts finished with two and three respectively. Josh Jenkins is yet to return from injury.

And in the midfield, the Crows had far too much depth. Rory Atkins, taken as a fourth round pick (No.81) in 2012, is emerging as a late-blooming steal and had a night out. Matt and Brad Crouch had 67 touches between them. Rory Sloane, the most underrated superstar in the game, went head to head with Ablett and probably won.

What should make Suns coach Rodney Eade's blood really boil was his side's work rate. It's one thing to get beaten by a better team, but the Suns weren't going to close that gap without bringing all the effort and pressure they could muster. One statistic in this regard was startling. Hampton, a small forward, distinguished himself with 10 tackles to go with his two goals. You could name 10 Suns who made that many between them.

They had a few bright spots: Adam Saad played on Betts and never stopped providing dash and dare from the backline while mostly keeping his brilliant opponent in check, and clever small forward Callum Ah Chee finished with a career-high five goals.

That aside, it was another dark night for the Suns.

The only sour note for the Crows came in the first minute of the match, with All-Australian defender Daniel Talia limping off clutching his left hamstring. But they march onwards, their percentage given another early boost, and a date with Richmond next week.