Power of the MCG inspires gutsy Port Adelaide win

Port Adelaide relished playing on the hallowed turf of the MCG, while Carlton took plenty of lessons away from the two sides’ encounter.

Port rose to the occasion at the MCG on Saturday.

Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley said the carrot of playing at the MCG played a key role in his side’s convincing 28-point win over Carlton on Saturday night.

The Power had last played the ground way back in July 2019, and relished the opportunity to run out at the home of footy.

Despite what Hinkley described as a mentally and physically taxing win over Richmond in Round 5, the opportunity on Saturday night was an exciting one for his players.

“The boys still get excited. We use it as part of our build-up to the week, that magnificent picture of the ‘G at night, under lights,” he said.

“For us it’s the second-best place to play because we love Adelaide Oval the most. But we love coming to the ‘G, and we deserve the opportunity to come here, so hopefully we keep playing like that.”

The victory saw Port Adelaide dismantle what was a disappointing Carlton outfit, returning an accurate 15.6.

Hinkley said he was especially happy given the week after a similarly bruising encounter against the Tigers last season saw his side rolled by Geelong to tune of 60 points.

“I was really pleased, to be honest,” Hinkley said.

“More pleased than you’d perhaps know, because last week was a really big game and a really strong performance. Last year after that big game (against Richmond) we didn’t play the game of football we wanted to play the next week. And to the boys credit, led by Tom (Jonas) and Ollie (Wines), I thought they were outstanding the way they went about it.”

Hinkley heaped praise on Sydney recruit Aliir Aliir and his intercept marking on Saturday night.

Aliir played a dominant role in the third quarter, single-handedly repelling a number of Carlton attacks.

“We really enjoy what he does. He’s such an aggressive footballer and we like that, we like the way he plays, we like the way he attacks the ball and attacks the game. He’s willing to help out any teammate in the air or on the ground.”

Hinkley also paid tribute to second-gamer Lachie Jones, and quietly put forward his young defender for an accolade this week.

“If they’re looking for someone to award the Rising Star to, I think he’s pretty good.”

Port Adelaide return home for a round six clash against St Kilda on Sunday night.

Carlton took plenty of lessons away from its round five loss.

Lacklustre Blues learned plenty, says Teague

Carlton coach David Teague said that despite winning a number of key stats on the night, his side were dealt a lesson in ball use by Port Adelaide at the MCG on Saturday night.

While the Power were in complete control for much of the night and ran out 28-point winners, Carlton finished with more scoring shots, inside 50s, clearances and tackles.

Teague said that these key indicators meant little when his players could not take advantage of strong positions on the field.

“The positive was we broke even in some of them (key indicators), and even more scoring shots and inside-50s,” he said.

“There’s bits you want to grab onto, but at the end of the day I think we learnt a lesson in terms of how clean they were with the ball. Their ball use just hurt us.”

The Blues coach said that his players’ decision making and execution was considerably behind Port Adelaide’s and needed to improve.

“We’ve got to become more consistent with it, and just do it for longer,” he said.

“Some of the numbers stacked up well, but we’re not quite finishing our plays. From a defensive point of view I thought there were some marking contests we got good looks at but just couldn’t get a big fist in, and they did at the other end.”

Teague said the result was particularly disappointing given they had backed themselves to compete against some of the competition’s best clubs.

“You want to play in these games and you want to compete against the best. At the end of the day you want to beat the best, and that’s what we’ve got to get to, and right now today tells us we’re not there yet.”

In what has become somewhat of a recurring theme at Carlton, one of the club’s shining lights was again Sam Walsh who was the home side’s best performer against Port Adelaide.

Walsh had 29 disposals, eight clearances and a goal in a strong performance through the midfield.

Teague heaped praise on the 20-year-old post-match.

“Sam’s been outstanding for us all year. If you watched the way he trained you wouldn’t be surprised … I think he’s going to be a great leader of this football club for a long time.”

The Blues host Brisbane at Marvel Stadium next Saturday afternoon.

Originally published as Power of the MCG inspires gutsy Port Adelaide win