Power challenges but finishes short
ONCE again Port Adelaide has come close to claiming a meaningful scalp in the AFL premiership race.
The Power’s two-point loss to Geelong at Simonds Stadium — decided on the one-two play of Cats stars Joel Selwood and Patrick Dangerfield — leaves Port Adelaide at 5-4 and still without a top-four scalp.
Ken Hinkley’s team played to the bitter finish, setting up a Hail Mary play to forward Robbie Gray who did not hold a mark in the last 10 seconds.
But it was Brownlow medallist Dangerfield who settled this epic with his opportunistic third goal with 98 seconds to play — after Selwood had dug out a clearance on the edge of the goalsquare.
The Power will rue an umpiring decision in the fourth quarter when forward Charlie Dixon was ruled to have taken too long over a set shot for goal and was forced to play on. Port was leading by three points at the time.
This opener to the AFL Indigenous Round had an enduring script. Geelong was always trying to put away the Power. And dare it be said, Port Adelaide never gave up.
Geelong’s work in the first term was reminiscent of some of the best work from the 2007 Grand Final won by the Cats against the Power — and celebrated again last night. But it was far from as efficient.
Port Adelaide’s pain on the scoreboard was being minimised by the work at the contests. The key players here were midfielders Brad Ebert with his tackling and Ollie Wines with his clearances, ruckman Patrick Ryder and Brendon Ah Chee.
The key question — would Geelong nail it or would Port Adelaide change the game with its own momentum swing — was not answered with any dramatic shift in the script at the start of the third term. The Cats missed their scoring attempts while the Power made its minimal hold on the ball count on the scoreboard.
As an arm-wrestle, this was Geelong being a blundering brute and Port Adelaide pushing back. No one illustrated this more than Gray with his three goals, two score assists and four clearances.