Collingwood and Isaac Quaynor have the last laugh against Adelaide and Izak Rankine as the hot Pies book home preliminary final - but here's how the defeat may have boosted the Crows' premiership chances

Craig McRae’s side took revenge on Adelaide on Thursday night, as Collingwood secured their passage to the preliminary finals with a huge win at the Adelaide Oval.

The Magpies and Isaac Quaynor had the last laugh, as the Melbourne-based outfit sealed a huge 79-55 victory.

Much of the pre-game build-up revolved around an incident that took place during the last time these two sides met in August, where Izak Rankine made a homophobic remark to Collingwood player, Isaac Quaynor.

The AFL had initially looked to hand Rankine a five-match suspension, but that was mitigated down to four matches after Adelaide made ‘several compelling medical submissions’ to the league regarding the welfare of their player.

Rankine has since spoken of his remorse following the incident, with tonight’s loss being the second game he will have served from his four-match ban.

But there were unsavoury scenes during the game as Quaynor was disgracefully booed by some Crows supporters every time he touched the ball.

It became most apparent during the first quarter, when the Pies halfback took a mark just inside his team’s forward 50. Boos rang out as he prepared to take a set shot, with his kick drawing nicely towards the middle sticks, but fell agonisingly just short, before being thumped out for a behind.

While Quaynor admitted he ‘did hear a little bit of it [the booing]’ thankfully, the player was largely unaffected by the noise.

'To be honest, I get so locked in during games, I don't pay much mind to anything else,' Quaynor added.

And his coach, McRae, rose to his defence after the game, lambasting fans for booing him.

'It is disappointing. Not just to Isaac (Quaynor), but there are always stories behind these things. I'm just not a boo-er,' McRae said.

'I find that really disappointing. When I first heard it, I thought 'gee, that's disappointing'. He must have touched the footy a lot because he had a lot of the ball. I'm really proud of him and Dan (Houston) and others.

'I'm not sure why they booed, you'd have to ask the supporters in the crowd.'

A quartet of goals from Jamie Elliott, who was magnificent for the Magpies, and a hat-trick from Steele Sidebottom saw the visitors wrestle the lead away from the hosts in the second half, with this year’s minor premiers unable to turn the tide back on their opponents late on.

But while Collingwood had the last laugh, the Crows will lick their wounds and go again, according to their head coach.

‘I think we’re reasonably clear on where we need to be better,’ a disappointed Matthew Nicks said on his team’s performance.

Despite the agony of losing at home, he is taking a few positives from this experience, admitting that his team will learn from tonight's match while adding that his side are looking ‘straight into [looking at] how we can get ourselves physically and mentally ready for next week.’

Interestingly, he believes this game will bode well for their upcoming semi-final, with the Crows now set to take on the loser of Saturday’s clash between the GWS Giants and Hawthorn.

‘We’ve all got finals experience under our belt, be it a small amount, it’s going to help us,’ the coach added.

While the heartbroken crows missed out on a berth in the preliminary finals, there was a certain irony for Rankinie, whose season still remains alive.

He will miss the Crows' semi-finals clash, and should the minor premiers win that game, he will also serve out the final game of his ban in their resulting preliminary finals game.

Rankine, who has been back in and around the squad in training this week after travelling to Italy for a warm-weather training camp, would then be eligible to play in the AFL Grand Final should the Crows reach the showpiece event.

His return for the final would be a huge boost for the Crows after the footy star has enjoyed one of his best seasons so far, having amassed 31 goals across 22 matches while also averaging 20.5 disposals a game this season.

On Thursday, some footy commentators noted that Adelaide looked a different side without the midfielder.

‘They missed the magic of Izak Rankine tremendously tonight,’ David King said to Fox Footy.

‘That spark inside 50, they had no answers to throw in the middle to get a wildcard.

‘They want to go to Rankine and that’s the gap in the game.’

Nicks confirmed that Rankine had been at the Adelaide Oval during the match, but had cut a low-key figure, with the Crows eager not to have too many distractions around the squad in the build-up to the crunch fixture, according to footy journalist Jon Ralph.

After the loss, he was seen in the changing room alongside several members of the club staff, listening in as the team reflected on the game.

And while his saga has dominated much of the discourse in the AFL over the past few weeks, Nicks quickly shut down talk of the 25-year-old in his post-match presser.

‘Izak was here tonight, but that’s not even a conversation for us at the moment,’ he said.

‘Right now, that’s a long, long way off. We’ve got work to do well and truly before that.’

Rankine was seen doing laps of the field at Adelaide’s training ground on Thursday, while Ralph also revealed that had the Crows won tonight’s game Rankine ‘will keep training with the club, keen to help out even though his year will be done.’

Earlier this week, the footy player spoke publicly for the first time on the saga that has rocked the league.

Rankine spoke of his remorse over the incident, and today is understood to have also apologised to the Crows’ AFLW Women’s side.

'I want to start by saying how deeply sorry I am for what I said,' Rankine said.

'There was no excuse, it was wrong and I take full responsibility. I'm disappointed in myself and I know I've let a lot of people down.

'I want to apologise to anybody that I've hurt or offended. I understand that word is offensive, it's harmful, it's hurtful and it has no place in our game or our society. 

'I am in no way a victim but going away has given me space to reflect and educate myself to understand the weight of my mistake.

'In the next few days, I will be standing in front of my teammates and the AFLW and apologising to them personally, as they deserve this at the very least.

'From here all I can do is put my head down, work hard, support my teammates in the best way I can and show through my actions that I am growing and learning from my mistake.

'More than anything, I want this club to succeed so I will be doing everything I can to earn everyone's trust back and have a positive impact on society and my supporters. Thank you.'

In the wake of the saga, former West Coast player Mitch Brown made history by becoming the first openly bisexual player to come out.

Brown emphasised that the AFL needs to do more to make football a more inclusive place for everyone, noting that Rankine was the sixth player in 16 months to have been suspended for a homophobic remark.

He issued a call to action to the league over the matter.

‘It’s time for the AFL and the clubs to commit to genuine change, embedding inclusion not just in words, but in culture, policies and everyday actions,’ Brown said.

‘If we can make our game a better place where everyone belongs, the ripple effect on Australian society will be profound.’

The AFL has worked hard to stop homophobia from taking place in football, with its CEO Andrew Dillon emphasising in the league’s 2025 LGBTQIA+ Action Plan that ‘there is no place for homophobia, biphobia, or transphobia – or any form of discrimination for that matter - in our game, workplace, or society.’

However, noting several other players, including Swans player Riak Andrew and West Coast’s Jack Graham, have received bans this year for homophobic slurs, and the reaction of fans inside the Adelaide Oval tonight to Quaynor, it is clear and, very much disappointingly so, that the problem still exists.