RICHMOND Â Â
1.4 Â 3.8 Â 7.10 Â 11.10 Â (76)
PORT ADELAIDE Â
1.6 Â 5.11 Â 6.14 Â 8.15 (63)
GOALS - Richmond: Butler 3, Stengle 2, Martin, Rioli, Riewoldt, Short, Lloyd, Cotchin.Â
Port Adelaide: Powell-Pepper 2, Ebert, Dixon, Neade, Trengove R Gray, S Gray.Â
BEST -Â Richmond: Martin, Lambert, Ellis, Grimes, Grigg, Nankervis.Â
Port Adelaide: Wingard, Ryder, Powell-Pepper, Trengove, Wines, Polec.
INJURIES Port Adelaide: Hombsch (knee) replaced in selected side by Neade; Hartlett (corked thigh).
UMPIRES Schmitt, Ryan, Mollison.
CROWD 39,979 at Adelaide Oval.
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The roar of the Tigers has just got incredibly louder. Their magnificent 13-point win over Port Adelaide in their so-called "Portress"  catapulted them into the top four and believe it – they're going to be hard to beat come September.
After being totally humiliated by the Crows here two months ago, Richmond stood tall under incredible pressure and surged clear with a magnificent last-quarter effort.
It left Port still to beat a team in the top eight, and the belief Port were a walk-up start to the finals for now looks a little shaky.
With so much at stake given the tightness of the top eight, this always promised to be a great contest, and Richmond and Port didn't disappoint.
There wasn't much between them – ultimately Richmond's will to win was just too great.
Richmond came here ready to play, right from the opening bounce, and not once did they seem to doubt their ability.Â
There were some superb one-on-one contests, and the tightness played a part in a low-scoring opening term, with only one goal from each side – the first coming from the Tigers' Jack Riewoldt almost 17 minutes into the game.
We had Port's Robbie Gray shadowed by Kane Lambert, Jackson Trengove finding it tough to escape the constant pressure of Alex Rance, Brad Ebert and Trent Cotchin locked constantly, and perhaps the most absorbing duel, Â Ollie Wines on Dustin Martin.
Martin, with his rugged yet intelligent play on the ball, and Trengove, at centre half-forward but playing more as a tagger on Rance, emerged as stand-outs. In a rare moment, Trengove brushed off Rance like a rag doll and goaled late in the second term.
A two-goal quarter usually signals ordinary play, but this was a battle of the best two defences in the league and neither disappointed. It was simply constant pressure, and both Port and Richmond seemed focused on being patient and retaining possession. It is what you would expect from two sides eyeing a top-four spot.
The pressure also resulted in an unusual combined half-time scoreline of 8.19, with Port missing six shots and hitting the post four times.
The resilience of both teams also delivered its share of turnovers under pressure, but of course there had to be a breaking point. Port's two goals within 67 seconds in the dying moments of the first half to give them a 15-point lead was telling. It is not normally a huge gap, but in this game where every possession was hard-fought, the Tigers knew they had to find something special.
Down 16 points almost into time on, stand up Tyson Stengle, an 18-year-old kid playing his first game. After showing poise in fleeting first-half moments he did well to find space and goal from 45 metres under extreme pressure to change the momentum in Richmond's favour. Within 54 seconds Daniel Rioli, 20, kicked a magnificent goal on the run. And then Martin ran 150 metres to win the ball and kicked a magnificent goal on the run.
They were three terrific goals given that Port seemed on the verge of taking this game by the throat, only to again release the pressure with poor kicking for goal.
The Tigers went into a torrid last term leading by two points, and with a top-four spot still very much up for grabs both teams knew the remaining 30 minutes or so could very well determine their season's fate.
When Butler became the first multiple goalkicker two minutes into the last quarter to give Richmond an eight-point lead, the pressure on Port intensified – the Tigers were sensing a memorable victory.
When Riewoldt took a magnificent mark and handballed to Stengle for an easy goal seven minutes in, there was a touch of excitement – the old Tiger and the new one, it summed up Richmond's incredibly focused team game in a new era.
It was a great team effort, but they had some outstanding performers, especially Lambert.
Their fans probably sat in their loungerooms waiting for another capitulation. The Port fans here did, but as we said there is something special about this bunch of Tigers. It's called character.