AFL Port Adelaide v Geelong: Wait on Orazio Fantasia knee issue as Port plays it safe

Orazio Fantasia is fragile but crucial to Port Adelaide. This is why the Power are desperate to secure him an exemption to see a medical specialist.

Port Adelaide is confident Orazio Fantasia will be right for the preliminary final in a fortnight’s time, as the Power seeks an exemption for the livewire forward to get his knee assessed.

Fantasia kicked four goals in a show-stealing performance against Geelong in the qualifying final at Adelaide Oval.

But he was substituted in the final quarter after he felt a “click” in his left knee.

It was the same knee that Fantasia had surgery to tidy up cartilage damage and significant bruising on the head of his knee.

Port coach Ken Hinkley said after the game Fantasia was withdrawn from the game as an abundance of caution.

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Orazio Fantasia struggles to his feet after taking a bump to the face. Picture: Getty Images

Slightly complicating the situation though is Port players and staff who played on Friday night are in isolation, as part of SA Health’s approval for Geelong to travel to Adelaide for the game.

This means the Power will need SA Health approval for Fantasia to get a scan on his knee and see a specialist while he is in isolation.

At the weekend Port general manager of football Chris Davies said at this stage the Power were confident about Fantasia’s chances.

“We will assess him over the next 48 hours,” he said.

“He came off complaining that he could feel some real soreness in there, so it will be an interesting one.

“I think right now we would be suggesting he would be available but we will have to assess that over the next 48 hours and into the week.”

Fantasia’s four goals and Aliir Aliir’s fantastic intercept game were further feathers in the caps of Port’s recruiting department.

Davies said it was about a sustained period of the right moves by the Power, with Scott Lycett, Ryan Burton, Charlie Dixon and Trent McKenzie all coming from other clubs.

“I think we are really fortunate that we have staff, Jason Cripps and Geoff Parker, these guys who have done a really good job over a period of time,” he said.

Fantasia celebrates one of his four goals. Picture: AFL Photos via Getty Images

“Clearly having a program that players want to come to as well is really important also, I think that Port Adelaide as a club has become a place where people want to play.

“And when you play in front of the people we do, and the pre-match (experience) we do I think that sets our club apart from others.

“And that has been a real tick for us, over the last few years we have been really aggressive to get into drafts, we have been really aggressive to bring in the types of players we want to bring in.

“That’s not saying we get it right all the time because we clearly don’t and a lot of the time there are a whole heap of factors that go into whether a player is successful or not.

“I think our club will continue to be aggressive and that’s how I would like it to be.”

Young key forward Mitch Georgiades will be fine for the preliminary final after he sat out the big win over the Cats with a hamstring injury.

The preliminary final is likely to be at Adelaide Oval, unless SA’s Covid-19 situation worsens.

With all but Brisbane on the road for the duration of the finals series, Hinkley said he was unsure just how that may benefit his side.

“We’ve done our part like every other team has. It’s somewhat of an advantage,” he said.

“But Brisbane stayed home last year and when it got to this stage it didn’t play out that they had a massive advantage.”

How trade targets made Port a flag favourite

Port Adelaide is one win away from a grand final.

It might have been two key pieces away from major success last season.

Aliir Aliir and Orazio Fantasia were not part of the Power’s 2020 premiership push.

They arrived via trades a month after Richmond ended Port Adelaide’s campaign in six-point preliminary final heartbreak.

On Friday night, they played crucial roles as the Power launched itself back into a preliminary final with a 43-point home triumph over Geelong.

Port Adelaide football manager Chris Davies said in November the club went into the trade period wanting those two players, believing they could have a huge influence – one at each end of the ground.

Fast-forward nine months and they did just that on the big stage.

Aliir Aliir helped set up the win early, then Orazio Fantasia put the Power out of reach.

Tom Jonas, Aliir Aliir and Miles Bergman celebrate Port Adelaide’s win over Geeling. Picture: James Elsby/AFL Photos

Ex-Sydney Swan Aliir finished with 14 touches, seven marks and 11 intercepts.

Fantasia booted a game-high four goals.

Looking composed and confident after earning his first All-Australian nod 24 hours earlier, Aliir was everywhere in the first quarter, chopping off Geelong attacking forays and launching Port Adelaide ones.

For Port Adelaide’s third goal, he ousted former Sydney teammate Gary Rohan, took an intercept mark then passed to fellow new All-Australian Ollie Wines, who assisted Peter Ladhams.

Aliir finished the first quarter with four intercept marks and three spoils.

“He’s the difference, he’s the reason Port Adelaide will go into quarter-time with a 10-point lead,” two-time premiership player Wayne Carey said on Channel 7.

Geelong tried to avoid kicking to him after quarter-time and although his influence dropped a little, his presence was still felt.

The future second-rounder for Aliir is looking like a serious bargain already for the Power.

Aliir was brought in to give the Power more backline size and intercepting ability.

Aliir Aliir is looking like a serious bargain already for the Power. Picture: Sarah Reed/AFL Photos

Fantasia was recruited – for a second-rounder and future third – to help Port Adelaide improve its finishing and allow young guns Connor Rozee and Zak Butters to spend more time through the midfield.

The ex-Bomber made the most of his opportunities.

His first major was instinctual and came just before quarter-time, when he roved a marking contest and snapped quickly.

Fantasia’s second was the result of a one-hand pick-up after Henderson did not get enough on a spoil.

A simple dropped mark from Patrick Dangerfield, of all people, led to Fantasia’s third goal four minutes into the third quarter.

Fantasia swooped on the error and, seeing an open goalsquare, 55m out, he bounced it through.

It would be the only major of the term.

Orazio Fantasia celebrates a goal for the Power. Picture: Sarah Reed/AFL Photos

He then added his fourth just 23 seconds into the fourth quarter after another Henderson spillage – he had a bad night – to push the margin out to 41 points.

Henderson and Dangerfield were far from the only Cats to make mistakes.

They were swamped by Port Adelaide’s pressure as stars who would normally be cool and composed in possession were coughing the ball up.

There was three-time premiership player and ex-Hawk Isaac Smith running into trouble unnecessarily and getting caught in a tackle by Willem Drew, forcing a scrappy, turnover kick.

Mark Blicavs did not go back far enough and kicked it into Scott Lycett, who was on the mark, allowing the Power to trap it in its attack.

When 196cm, 96kg star Geelong recruit Jeremy Cameron tried to bulldoze through 181cm, 75kg Zak Butters towards what looked a certain goal, the Power youngster stood firm and made him lose possession.

Fantasia ended Friday night’s match with nine touches and his own injury – a left knee issue – having only returned from the sidelines this week.

But the Power now has a week off before a likely home preliminary final and it will be hoping he will be available for that game, as well as forward Mitch Georgiades.

For now, Port Adelaide is premiership favourite with the TAB and two new pieces of the puzzle have played a massive part in that.

Power-ful flag statement as Port dismantle Cats

By Simeon Thomas-Wilson

Is the second time going to be the charm for Port Adelaide?

For the second straight year the Power have defeated Geelong in a qualifying final at Adelaide Oval.

But while last year’s victory felt like a moment where the Power well and truly arrived as a flag contender, Friday night’s 43-point win seemed like a statement that their time could be now.

Geelong were nowhere near its best, but a relentless and instinctive Power never allowed the sluggish Cats to get going in a brilliant performance that has likely set up another preliminary final at Adelaide Oval.

But importantly this time it won’t be against the winning machine that was Richmond and Ken Hinkley’s cry of “we’re ready” in January looks like it might be just ringing true.

Recruits Orazio Fantasia (four goals) and Aliir Aliir (seven marks and 11) were sensational for the Power, as they consigned Geelong to its sixth loss in its last seven qualifying finals – although Fantasia was substituted out of the game with a left knee injury.

The race to the 2021 Toyota AFL Finals Series is on and every match matters. Watch Live & Ad-Break Free on Kayo. New to Kayo? Try 14-days free >

Orazio Fantasia kicked four goals but was subbed out of the game. Picture: James Elsby/AFL Photos via Getty Images

FINALS DEJA VU

Same ground, same stage and same teams, there was definitely a little sense of de ja vu coming into the game.

And then the match started.

Tom Hawkins, kicked 0.5 last year, he missed an early chance to open the scoring, and the sense of familiarity didn’t stop there.

The man who did kick the first goal in last year’s clash between the two, Motlop, incredibly did the same in the 2021 edition.

A short kick was seized upon by Todd Marshall, Robbie Gray found some space and easily picked out the former Cat in acres of space near the goal and like he did in 2020 he slotted the first goal of the game.

Motlop finished with two goals and an assist, and again saved his best for the big stage.

From outside 50!

Orazio Fantastia has been nothing short of brilliant! #ColesGoals | #AFLFinalspic.twitter.com/mgzAvv6qV6

— AFL (@AFL) August 27, 2021

SLAM DUNCAN AND THE “CHAND-ALIIR”

Chris Scott conceded he had been downplaying expectations on star on baller Mitch Duncan, after 10 weeks out with a knee injury.

The Cats coach is going to have a hard time now after Duncan made a fine return to footy.

Despite the time on the sidelines, he had 14 disposals in the first quarter and was carving up the Power around the ground.

But the Cats couldn’t take advantage of this thanks to Aliir.

Newly minted as an All-Australian, the former Swan showed why he is right up there – if not the – among the recruits of the year.

He had four intercept marks, five intercepts and three spoils at quarter-time, with the Cats unable to stop him from quelling their attacks.

Aliir Aliir was enormous. Picture: Sarah Reed/AFL Photos via Getty Images

The All-Australian defender took a host of intercept marks. Picture: Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images

THE CLEARANCE IMBALANCE

Incredibly, despite Port’s dominance, Geelong were winning the clearances and pretty convincingly.

At three quarter times the stats had that Port had not won a single centre clearances, while Geelong were up 28-15 around the ground.

But while the Cats were winning it at the source, post clearance they had trouble all night.

Conversely the Power were able to spread far better from clearances and able to score a lot more.

Come the final siren the centre clearance count was 15-3 in favour of Geelong yet on the scoreboard the Cats were 43-points down.

SCOREBOARD

POWER 4.3, 8.7, 9.10, 12.14 (86)

CATS 2.5, 3.8, 3.11, 5.13 (43)

BEST

POWER: Wines, Aliir, Boak, Fantasia, Amon, Jonas, Dixon

CATS: Duncan, Henry, Close, Parfitt, Dangerfield

GOALS

POWER: Fantasia 4, Motlop 2, Powell-Pepper 2, Butters, Ladhams, Gray, Marshall

CATS: Hawkins 2, Cameron, Selwood, Simpson

INJURIES

POWER: Fantasia (knee)

CATS: O’Connor (hamstring), Bews (hamstring)

CROWD: 20,000 at Adelaide Oval

The brilliant pick up from Charlie and an even better finish from Motlop!#YokayiFooty | #AFLFinalspic.twitter.com/s0aR2sm9qJ

— AFL (@AFL) August 27, 2021

EARLIER: KOCH’S SWIPE AT LOPSIDED FREE KICK COUNT

Port Adelaide chairman David Koch has taken a not-so-subtle dig at the free kick count in Friday night’s qualifying final.

Midway through the second quarter, Koch tweeted the numbers 18-5 – the discrepancy at the time, in favour of visitors Geelong.

The Cats finished the term ahead 20-5 in free kicks, but the Power was up by 29 points.

Geelong’s last goal for the quarter came from consecutive frees.

Joel Selwood copped a push in the back, the Cats took advantage, then Sam Simpson was awarded one, about 35m from goal, for the same thing.

18-5

— David Koch (@kochie_online) August 27, 2021

Brad Close and Patrick Dangerfield (three each) were the major winners from the umpires in the first half.

Earlier, Geelong midfielder Mark O’Connor was substituted out with a hamstring injury.

O’Connor, who had been minding Robbie Gray and Connor Rozee at times during the game, came off during the second quarter and had ice taped to his left hamstring.

He was replaced by medical substitute and first-year Cat Shaun Higgins.

Originally published as AFL Port Adelaide v Geelong: Wait on Orazio Fantasia knee issue as Port plays it safe