Port Adelaide blow Hawthorn away in Gather Round ambush

The final game of Gather Round was tipped to produce fireworks, one club had other ideas as they dismantled their rivals in wild scenes.

Port Adelaide have stunned the footy world with a Gather Round ambush against Hawthorn on Sunday night.

Many believed things would boil over at Adelaide Oval when the two sides met to close out the footy extravaganza.

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Tensions between the two clubs have been simmering since last September after coach Ken Hinkley taunted Hawks forward Jack Ginnivan with an aeroplane gesture.

What unfolded in the first half however was a one-sided bloodbath with the Power blowing their rivals away before securing the 18.13 (121) to 14.7 (91) victory.

The underdog entering the contest, after a lacklustre 1-3 start to the season, the Power completely dominated in front of their home crowd.

Three early goals set the tone before Hawthorn struck back with one of their own. Then the floodgates opened.

The power rattled off nine straight goals to blow the lead out from 13-points to an astonishing 71-points a little over halfway through the second quarter.

ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA - APRIL 13: (L-R) Jason Horne-Francis, Connor Rozee and Ollie Wines of the Power celebrate during the 2025 AFL Round 05 match between the Port Adelaide Power and the Hawthorn Hawks at Adelaide Oval on April 13, 2025 in Adelaide, Australia. (Photo by Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images)

Footy fans were certain the contest between the two sides would have provided fireworks, but nobody saw this coming.

The Age’s Andrew Wu wrote: “This is some Gather Round Ambush.”

The official AFL account wrote halfway through the second quarter: “What is happening at Adelaide Oval?!”

Fox Footy commentator Anthony Hudson proclaimed: “This is barely believable, where are you Hawthorn? The scoreboard is quite astonishing. Where have you been hiding this, Kenny?”

Jordan Lewis added: “If you’re Sam Mitchell and trying to fix some part – there’s too much going wrong at the moment. Port have just been too clean. Even the defenders are all at sea.”

Gerard Whateley said: “(It was asked) How could Hawthorn be premiership favourites? They won’t be anymore! Ten goals to one - it’s not what was billed as the main event.

“Headaches everywhere - it’s just trying to stop the haemorrhaging.”

Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell had plenty of work on his hands. Picture: Michael Klein

Hawthorn began to show signs of life late in the second quarter as they kicked two late goals before kicking the first two after the break.

The Power however responded to Hawthorn’s fight back to keep at 47-points with one quarter left to play in the contest.

With Port Adelaide fans delighted in the stands, the Hawks found their wings and kicked five goals to one to bring the margin back to within 22-points.

But just when it looked like an upset for the ages might be on the cards, the Power again responded before the Hawks threw away any hope.

A goal to Sam Powell-Pepper was followed up by a goal to Willie Rioli before a free kick was given away to give Rioli two in a matter of seconds.

The win pushes the Power up to 11th on the ladder, one game outside of the top eight while the Hawks fall to fifth, one game behind the undefeated Lions.

Originally published as Port Adelaide blow Hawthorn away in Gather Round ambush