Port Adelaide v Adelaide: Showdown scare for Crows

ADELAIDE              4.2  7.11  11.14  15.19 (109) 
PORT ADELAIDE   4.3  6.4  12.7  14.10 (94)
GOALS - Adelaide:  Betts 5,  McGovern 3,  Jenkins 2, Lynch 2, Walker 2,  Brown. Port Adelaide: Young 3,  Neade 2, RGray 2,  Palmer, Polec, Toumpas, Westhoff,  Amon, Broadbent, Boak.
BEST - Adelaide: M. Crouch, Lyons, Betts, Laird, Jacobs, Atkins. Port Adelaide: R Gray, Wines, Clurey, Amon, Boak, S Gray.
INJURIES - Adelaide: Smith (concussion).
UMPIRES Kamolins, Farmer,  Harris.
CROWD 49,541 at Adelaide Oval.

Adelaide went for percentage to grab top spot but came perilously close to being dumped from the top four by a brave Port Adelaide in Showdown XLI last night.

The sluggish and very wayward Crows led by 21 points 22 minutes into the third quarter, and when the margin was a mere point at three-quarter time with coach Ken Hinkley taking his players close to the fans for his final address, there was a strong belief among the 49,541 Port home-game crowd they could cause a huge upset.

But stand up Eddie Betts in his 250th game to kick his fifth and match-sealing  goal with 23 seconds remaining, and the Crows breathed a mighty sigh of relief with a desperately hard-fought 15-point win.

Causing concern for Adelaide was Brodie Smith, who was accidentally kicked in the side of the head by Port's Aaron Young five minutes into the second quarter. Smith suffered concussion twice last season, and is certain to miss Adelaide's crucial contest with West Coast  at Adelaide Oval next Friday night which will determine their top-four finish.

The match review panel is also likely to look at a clumsy attempt to spoil by Adelaide's Rory Sloane, who made contact with Port's Brad Ebert, forcing him off the field with the blood rule. It happened late in the third term – 10 minutes after Ebert received another heavy knock to the head accidentally and left him dazed.

The Sloane incident – and Port's reaction — added much-needed bite into Adelaide's game, who for the most part looked sluggish. 

Port started well, and getting the Crows into the game quickly was the man of the night Betts kicking three goals in the first quarter, and with his fourth in the second he took his season tally to 64 goals – his highest season tally in his 12 magnificent AFL years.

The second quarter was one the Crows would rather forget. They dominated the play for all but the last few minutes  and turned the game around with a vast lift in possessions, clearances and 22 inside-50 entries to Port's six.

But the Crows kicked six behinds — including three from  set shots and hitting the post twice – before they goaled at the 18-minute mark. They kicked 3.8 to nothing up to the 30-minute mark only to concede two late goals  from very lucky free kicks.

What should have been a five or six-goal half-time lead was just 13 points, and Adelaide left the gate open for a Port recovery.

But there was also a lot to like about the Crows. Port went in hard for the ball, and often the man, and in years gone by they would have rattled the Crows and tormented them further on the scoreboard. However,  Adelaide's maturity came to the fore and they responded well – increasing their tempo and forcing Port into countless errors coming out of defence.

The Crows looked flat, especially early, and while the Subiaco trip six days earlier probably had some effect, nothing could be taken away from Port's persistence and feisty approach. Sadly for them, they didn't have the skills to match.

Adelaide's structure was also very sound; they had the players behind the packs and always seemed set up for their rebound game. The Crows were deep in the packs too, and not just looking for the feeds.

Also significant was the fact Adelaide adapted well to the loss of Smith early in the second quarter. He was one of their best until then, and while the backlines were shaken they weren't rattled. Again the sign of a mature side to be able to handle this pressure.

There were many night heroes, especially Adelaide's Matt Crouch, who battled tenaciously, and Port's brilliant Robbie Gray and Ollie Wines. It was a tough night  but Showdowns are never easy.