Port still remains enigmatic. How are they doing it? | Graham Cornes

He still can’t forgive Port Adelaide for the “treachery” of 1990 but Graham Cornes says the football they are playing in 2023 is turning haters into lovers.

“Collectively, they’ve been remarkable.” Ken Hinkley tried to be understated about his team but the satisfaction was clearly evident.

On Thursday night Port had just won its eleventh consecutive game against a reigning premier that brought its best to a first half of football that stunned the Power and silenced the rabid crowd.

Two soft goals just before half time did nothing to inspire confidence that Port could regroup at the long break. It was just one of those nights where nothing was going right.

Easy goals were missed, the bounce of the ball favoured Geelong who started the game in premiership form and was clearly getting the best of the umpiring decisions. (At one stage the free kick count was 14 to six against the Power).

Even the most ardent Port fans began to accept the inevitability of it.

And Ken Hinkley’s critics were inwardly smirking.

Power coach Ken Hinkley celebrates during the 2023 AFL Round 13 match between the Western Bulldogs and the Port Adelaide Power at Marvel Stadium. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos

Finally, they could resume their attacks, although when his team is sitting equal top, any criticism would seem petty and self-serving.

However, the change after the halftime break was as perplexing as it was inspiring.

Despite Patrick Dangerfield conning the umpire into a 50-metre penalty after a dubious free kick from which he goaled immediately after the break, Port exploded.

There is no other word for it.

It was an explosion of effort, action and ball movement that resulted in a withering burst of seven goals in 19 minutes. Geelong, the reigning premier that had so dominated the first half, was done, capitulating under the pressure.

It’s hard to write them off when they still have so many games at Kardinia Park, but any hopes of repeating last year’s premiership seem dashed.

Nevertheless Port still remains enigmatic.

How are they doing it?

They seem undermanned in defence, the forward line, relying on relentless pressure, is still a work in progress, and the ruck is dependent on Scott Lycett who was dropped earlier in the season.

It’s the midfield that has driven this amazing run of 11 consecutive wins. The rest of the country is starting to realise what South Australia has known for several years – that Connor Rozee and Zak Butters are very, very good, and Jason Horne-Francis is special.

Hinkley explained after the Geelong game how his team builds pressure by denying the opposition possession and using the ball well.

That’s a feature of their game. They have several players who are beautiful kicks and a couple of left-footers to boot. An elite left-foot kick – it’s one of football’s most valuable weapons.

There is something else about this Port Adelaide team that defies the football norm.

They are turning haters into lovers.

Like Collingwood, that team that everybody loves to hate, Port Adelaide has always been seen as the dark side of football – particularly here in Adelaide. However, both Collingwood and Port Adelaide are playing football the way the purists love.

They attack frenetically and try to score quickly, as they did on Thursday night.

It is exciting, compelling football that attracts even those of us who have had a lifelong football hatred of anything black and white (and teal).

Connor Rozee and Zak Butters of the Power celebrate a goal against the Cats at Adelaide Oval. Picture: James Elsby/AFL Photos

Who hasn’t loved Craig McRae’s impact on the game and who isn’t moved by the sheer exhilaration of Port’s ball movement when Rozee, Butters and Horne-Francis are involved.

We may have been haters but there is plenty to like about Port Adelaide and Collingwood. There’s an old saying that “forgiveness can turn enemies into friends”.

We can never quite forgive Port Adelaide for the treachery of 1990 but the football they (and Collingwood) are playing in 2023 is definitely turning haters into lovers.

“It’s a nice way to go into the bye”, said Hinkley on Thursday night. True, they get a deserved rest but it comes with the challenge that they have awakened the rest of the competition.

They now become the hunted instead of the hunter.

On the other side of Port Road, the Crows similarly have excited their fans and made the rest of the competition take notice.

They may not make the eight but measured against expectations, 2023 thus far has been a successful year for them.

None of the football “experts” expected them to play finals football but going into the bye they were in seventh position on the ladder. Given their yoyo form, they will probably hover between seventh to tenth on the ladder.

Their game plan too is built on ground level pressure and quick movement and although their best is great to watch, they lack pure class to execute consistently.

Adelaide’s real strength is the forward line with Taylor Walker defying age and his critics to be one of the league’s most dangerous forwards. But talent abounds around him.

Fogarty, Rankine, Rachelle and the emerging Pedlar and Murphy are building as a unit. However, getting the ball to them often enough poses a problem.

The team’s biggest issues have been its clearance work and its ball usage. The Crows are regularly smashed in the centre square and at stoppages around the ground and all too often they turn the ball over with poor disposal. Apart from Walker, its two best ball users are captain, Jordan Dawson and running defender Brodie Smith, who is now approaching veteran status. They need more.

However, the Crows are a young team and as one of their earlier marketing strategies proclaimed: “the future looks bright.”

Coach Matthew Nicks deserves much credit.

At the time he had the toughest job in football taking on the Crows coaching role. No other football team had been subjected to so much scrutiny, criticism and calumny, much of which was fabricated and destructive.

Yet there was a fresh naivety and optimism about him that ensured he would be given time to build and finetune.

Matthew Nicks during the Crows’ Round 13 match against West Coast Eagles at Adelaide Oval. Picture: Sarah Reed

None of us expected the team to completely bottom out but even then his positivity and optimism blunted the barbs of critics. Four years on and he is the hardened, professional senior coach.

Perhaps he realises that patience has a use-by date and his team must eventually progress deep into September if he is to keep his job. The secret to success is winning on the road. It’s been the downfall of other Crows coaches before him but at the moment, his team lacks the class and polish to beat the best teams away from Adelaide Oval. Rectify that and the Crows are assured of September action.

There’s been much criticism of the modern game and how it has been officiated and distorted by the AFL’s paranoia about injury. It has been particularly frustrating to see players with no malicious intent suspended. However, putting that frustration aside, thus far there has been much for Power and Crows fans to be excited about. Even if you have hated Port Adelaide in the past.