Port Adelaide concede fewest ever points in a game, holding Gold Coast to just 20
PORT Adelaide is charging back from the football wilderness and into the finals after a record-breaking night after a hapless Gold Coast Suns.
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PORT Adelaide is charging back from the football wilderness and into the finals where the question of how far they can go may rest on the untapped potential of youth.
Auditions for spots in Port Adelaide’s first final were open on Saturday night when coach Ken Hinkley opted for youth over experience on the eve of September.
The team that mercilessly beat Gold Coast by 115 points included four players with 15 games between them and nine of the 22 players had less than 50 games to their name.
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Hinkley either has complete faith in his young guns or there will be changes with more senior players like Jackson Trengove, Aaron Young, Jarman Impey, Jack Hombsch, Angus Monfries, Brendon Ah Chee and Matthew Broadbent all out of the team.
While they’re out, Riley Bonner, Todd Marshall - who kicked his first AFL goal - Aidyn Johnson and Dougal Howard are in and they didn’t do much wrong, meaning at the very least their spots will command discussion over the next fortnight.
Howard looks a lock and Johnson is going to be hard to knock out after his pressure efforts including repeated tackles on the goal line in the second quarter to set up a goal and chase down of Adam Saad in the third were outstanding.
That young group doesn’t include 15th-gamer Dan Houston who has shown he and Jasper Pittard can co-exist in the same team.
Houston’s pick up and goal off two steps in the second quarter showed the poise and class we’ve seen all season while Jake Neade, who has been on the outer most of the year, has now played three games in a row and his performance should see him prepare for a final as well.
If last week’s gritty win over the Western Bulldogs helped Port turn the corner after a patchy month of footy, Saturday night’s big win over Gold Coast added some ruthlessness and polish albeit against a half-strength Suns side which offered little resistance.
But before the debate again over who Port has or hasn’t beaten, Power fans should stop and appreciate the fact they are alive again in September.
Players turned up to pre-season training in November to find the words “what did we learn” on the scoreboard at Alberton, Hinkley admitted he could sense there was pressure on his job and then came the message - or ultimatum as it was interpreted by some - from president David Koch that “we must play finals”.
The team responded to the mounting pressure by equalling their best regular season record under Hinkley with 14-8 matching their fifth-place finish in 2014. And it’s on the back of wins in Sydney, Perth, Brisbane, Melbourne, Ballarat and Shanghai.
Returning ruckman Paddy Ryder was again supreme, Sam Gray kicked a career-high six goals and Charlie Dixon added four, while Ollie Wines got them going early.
Wines’ smother on David Swallow at full-back started an unbroken chain of possession which led to Port’s first goal and he began feeding Port’s outside runners from stoppages at will.
The Power kept Gold Coast scoreless for the entire second and third quarters and their domination was aided by some woeful skills by the Suns.
Travis Boak played another strong game while Hamish Hartlett was rock solid across half-back, Darcy Byrne-Jones was lively and Robbie Gray did a bit of everything.
The icing on the cake came nine minutes into the final quarter when Marshall took a strong mark going back with the flight of the ball, kicked his first goal in AFL footy and was mobbed by his teammates who had plenty to celebrate.
In a forgettable result, Gold Coast’s 3.2 was the lowest score in its AFL history, eclipsing their 4.10 (34) against the Bulldogs in 2012.
PORT ADELAIDE 2.3 9.6 14.12 20.15 (135)
GOLD COAST 2.1 2.1 2.1 3.2 (20)
BEST
Port Adelaide: S.Gray, O.Wines, P.Ryder, D.Byrne-Jones, C.Dixon, T.Boak, H.Hartlett, J.Polec
Gold Coast: S.May, J.Harbrow, P.Wright
GOALS
Port Adelaide: S.Gray 6, C.Dixon 4, C.Wingard, J.Neade 2, R.Gray, D.Houston, J.Westhoff, B.Ebert, J.Polec, T.Marshall
Gold Coast: P.Wright 2, J.Lyons
INJURIES
Port Adelaide: Nil
Gold Coast: C.Ah Chee (thigh).
UMPIRES: R. Findlay, D. Harris, C. Fleer.
CROWD: 34,288 at Adelaide Oval.
Originally published as Port Adelaide concede fewest ever points in a game, holding Gold Coast to just 20
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