Round 3 – Adelaide v Port Adelaide: Dawson puts Power up Shit Creek
Port Adelaide yet again has conceded a handy three-quarter-time lead.
This time the latest choke was to arch-enemy the Adelaide Crows in Showdown 51 courtesy of Sydney Swans recruit Jordan Dawson.
Port sit winless at 0-3 and face undefeated reigning premiers Melbourne in Adelaide on Thursday night.
Dawson’s curling after-the-siren goal, after he took the free kick for the injured Lachlan Murphy, ripped the hearts from the Power players and supporters at Adelaide Oval on Friday night.
Murphy was crudely tackled head-high by Sam Mayes and was unable to take the free.
Adelaide’s best kicker Dawson took it and the rest is history to give the Crows its first win of the season amid euphoric scenes in and out of the Crows’ coaches’ box which was another classic entrenched into Showdown folklore.
Port Adelaide crumbled in the latter stages by firstly wasting goal-scoring chances when Travis Boak, brilliant all night, muffed a chance to ice the game from straight in front.
Earlier his experienced teammate Ollie Wines couldn’t convert and Mayes, couldn’t maximise in what could’ve been a five or six-goal evening for him.
Adelaide’s Elliott Himmelberg (four goals) did what they could not and that’s kick big goals in key moments.
His opposing number Todd Marshall finally showed the Power faithful what he’s capable of with a game-high five goals.
The now under-siege Port coach Ken Hinkley said his team was “better” than last week’s meek showing against another side full of kids, Hawthorn.
“Some stuff was better, still not super, but it was better,” Hinkley said.
“We’re a better team than that and we expect to be a better team than that.
“You just keep working and that’s all you can do, you stay in the now, you don’t get too distracted, you work really hard.”
There was another kid who pulled the Power’s pants down.
He was Lachlan Gollant.
He flew for marks and was a physical presence despite his still light frame.
Gollant’s Jack Gunstan-like shots on goal yielded him four goals.
There are rumblings down at Albertan and Port’s reserves, the Magpies, were smashed by 10 goals in the curtain raiser against Adelaide.
Hinkley said the outside noise won’t distract his team from what has to be an “in the moment” mindset.
“Absolutely you believe in that, but we understand it gets challenging,” Hinkley said.
“We just don’t look too far. That’s a long way to look isn’t it?
“We’ve just got to stay here and look right now how we get to win number one, don’t worry about win number two, three or four or however many it might take, let’s get to win number one as quick as we possibly can.”
But it’s likely to be way too late.
ADELAIDE 2.1 7.3 10.5 15.6 (96)
PORT ADELAIDE 5.2 9.7 11.12 13.14 (92)
GOALS
Adelaide: Gollant 4, Himmelberg 4, Dawson 2, Cook, McHenry, Schoenberg, Sholl
Port Adelaide: Marshall 5, Georgiades 2, Mayes 2, Drew, Frederick, Lycett, Motlop
BEST
Adelaide: Dawson, Laird, Crouch, Himmelberg, Keays, Shoenberg, Gollant
Port Adelaide: Boak, Marshall, Wines, Burton, Houston, Mayes
INJURIES
Adelaide: Murphy (neck)
Port Adelaide: Skinner
SUBSTITUTES
Adelaide: Luke Pedlar (unused)
Port Adelaide: Martin Frederick (replaced Skinner at three-quarter time)
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About Nicholas Kossatch
Tall and intelligent and athletically built who calls a spade a spade. Love sports writing and sending letters and texts to the editor about AFL and the Port Adelaide Power - win, lose or draw. I do not sit on the fence. Soon to be 40! I play basketball and over 35's supers football. Have played amateur footy and a bit of cricket and basketball when living in Adelaide. Do some writing for the Murray Pioneer,
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JTH- it was such a curiously compelling kick. At first, I didn’t think it’d get the journey as it seemed he only got about half of it, then it appeared to be heading for a behind to the right, then I thought it might be touched on the line and, of course, it ultimately cleared the fence. That Dawson didn’t fully connect with the ball and it still travelled 50+ metres is evidence of his elite kicking. I’ve rarely seen a kick invested with so many narrative twists. It was like a Robert Drewe short story.
Well played Kossy. Your Gollant/Gunston point is spot on.
Dawson’s swing to the left may be a metaphor for a Saturday coming up in May. Antony Green wouldn’t have called it off the boot, that’s for sure. Dawson’s lethal left foot should be given its own guernsey.
I had to eat my words as Himmelberg bobbed up for his best game for the Crows. McAdam in for Fogarty next week in a tricky encounter against the Dons, who pantsed us last time at Docklands. I still reckon the Crows have one too many short blokes, but Murphy was still going when it counted at least.
Crack open another apricot slice Crows fans.
Swish, yes Fog was very average. Lots to like for Crows supporters for sure. Gollant for this week’s Rising Star nom.
A great, if not extraordinary, victory for a very persistent Crows outfit. Seemingly down for the count, Adelaide kept its coo, especially around goals to snatch a very important win for the club. It will now be most interesting to note whether that bold prediction from Port Coach Hinkley that his team is cherry ripe for 3 Flags from the next 5 seasons comes back to bite him on the bum. With games against Melbourne and Carlton in the next 2 weeks, it’s quite conceivable that the Power will be 0-5 in arrears with hopes of competing in this year’s finals slipping away.On the other hand the Crows must prove in the next weeks that this victory wasn’t a flash in the pan.
Sorry Kossy. I was sure that this was originally posted by JTH but I may be wrong. I reckon Port’s best is good enough but they might want to find it pronto! Georgiades is exciting and looks a likely match-winner for you.