Port Adelaide in top-four mix after tough win over Melbourne

PORT Adelaide soaked up Melbourne’s finals-like pressure then turned the tables in a brutal final-quarter to as the heat rises in the fight for a spot in the top four.

Ruckmen Charlie Dixon and Max Gawn in a battle of the beards, Picture: Getty Images

WHEN Port Adelaide fell 20 points down under an avalanche of inside-50s and clearances to Melbourne, the question was whether they were up for the fight.

For three quarters they had stumbled under Melbourne’s finals-like pressure but they refused to wilt and came up big when it mattered in the last.

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There was Charlie Dixon’s repeated contests, Robbie Gray’s knock-ons, Justin Westhoff’s courageous play, Ollie Wines and Paddy Ryder’s overhead marks and Dougal Howard’s fist. Then Lindsay Thomas and Sam Gray finished it off with their set shots to get the Power home by 10 points.

Tom Jonas was the rock in a defence under siege but Westhoff was incredible and his 50m goal in time-on of the final term helped ice the result.

Melbourne’s Jack Viney fends off Port Adelaide’s Ollie Wines. Picture: AAP

Earlier, Port’s oldest player chased down Dom Tyson for a free kick, took contested marks in the forward line, spoiled the ball in defence and pinch-hit in the ruck to again highlight just how versatile he is.

Just as awesome was Ollie Wines, who in the dying moments took a contested mark from a Power kick-in, pushed forward and took one at half-forward as the final siren went.

Captain Travis Boak was very good and his kick to set up a Westhoff goal from Todd Marshall’s ground ball get on the boundary typified Port’s mindset.

The win takes Port Adelaide to a 9-4 record with games against Carlton, St Kilda and Fremantle coming up.

It was such a gutsy win for Port Adelaide that will give its top four chances a huge boost because for three quarters the Power looked ordinary under Melbourne’s real and perceived pressure.

They could win the hot footy but needed cool heads to go with it and their composure had deserted them with hurried kicks, punching the footy when they could have marked, overrunning the ball and over-handballing when they needed to stay calm.

But class, a never-say-die attitude and a stoic defensive effort saw Port concede just two points in the final quarter to get the win.

The titanic ruck battle between Max Gawn and Paddy Ryder finished even and while Melbourne’s midfield, led by bulls Clayton Oliver and Jack Viney, won the stats sheet, it didn’t translate to the scoreboard.

It took 21 minutes to break a goalless deadlock but Melbourne arrived with a bang with three goals in five minutes to give the Demons the early advantage.

Charlie Dixon tries to shrug off Oscar McDonald and Bernie Vince. Picture: Sarah Reed

Port had its chances but missed three shots, two very gettable, and trailing 4-14 in clearances pulled the trigger to send Robbie Gray — who wasn’t seeing any action inside 50 — into the midfield for a spark.

But it was Brad Ebert who found his range. After an unusually quiet month, a desperate Ebert lunged at Joel Smith to catch him holding the ball and kicked the Power’s first goal after the quarter-time siren.

Dixon caught Oscar McDonald with the footy and Chad Wingard floated across the pack and kicked a brilliant set shot from a tight angle.

Steven Motlop only had six touches in the first half but set up two goals and the pick of them was in time-on when he burst through the centre of the ground, had three bounces and the composure to wait for Boak to run into position and weighted the pass perfectly.

Robbie Gray’s two third-quarter goals got Port right back in it but again the Dees had the answers through Tim Smith, Jake Melksham and Christian Salem.

But Port had one last crack left in them and they exhausted themselves in the final quarter with manic workrate at both ends of the ground.

The down-the-line contested marks to Wines, Dixon, Ryder and then Wines again at the death had the crowd on its feet

PORT ADELAIDE 1.3 4.6 8.7 11.9 (75)

MELBOURNE 3.5 4.8 9.9 9.11 (65)

BEST

Power: Jonas, Wines, Westhoff, Boak, Dixon, Wingard, Houston, Powell-Pepper

Demons: Viney, Oliver, Melksham, Hannan, Jones, Brayshaw, T. McDonald

GOALS

Power: Ebert, R.Gray, Westhoff 2, Wingard, Boak, Dixon, Westhoff, Thomas, S. Gray Demons: T.McDonald 3, Hannan 2, Petracca, T. Smith, Melksham, Salem.

Umpires: C.Deboy, M.Nicholls, S.Hay, S.McInerney.

Crowd: 40,751 at Adelaide Oval.

Originally published as Port Adelaide in top-four mix after tough win over Melbourne