Scott slammed the pitch invader’s dangerous behaviour, citing the WACA Test of the 1982-83 Ashes when Alderman dislocated his right shoulder after his attempt to tackle an English fan went horribly wrong. The injury resulted in Alderman missing a year of cricket.

“I could go way back – and I’m showing my age – Terry Alderman needed a shoulder reconstruction because of one of these idiots,” Scott said.

“Seeing someone still sprint out on the football field in this day and age is disheartening. I fail to understand.

Nicks did not go so far as to criticize Crouch and Keays for physically abusing the invader, who will be barred from Adelaide Oval for at least three years.

“That carries a lot of risk,” he declared. “Being in the thick of things on a football field poses a risk, particularly when there is a game in progress.

“To be honest, there are a lot of risks—not just for our players, but also for that individual.”

“Was it Keaysy who brought him down … what if? Maybe the fines aren’t big enough. It’s really dangerous too.

“I’m generally so far away from punitive reactions to almost anything in society – that’s just not the way I believe things should be done.

“I’d be annoyed if I was the Crows – they had the ball.”

Adelaide’s players took it upon themselves to deal with the unwanted visitor.

Then Ben Keays – in scenes reminiscent of Andrew Symonds’ iconic shoulder-barging of a streaker in a one-day international against India at the Gabba – collared the field rusher, who was duly swarmed upon by an army of redcoats and marched out of the stadium.

“It’s really disappointing and it’s dangerous,” Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks said.

“Pitch invaders … I don’t understand it. It’s a little concerning.

“I took the opportunity to have a look on the computer to see where we could be better, so I didn’t get a good look at what played out.