This wasn’t just another Port Adelaide win – this was a pack of black and whites, with mongrel in them, marking their turf.
Port beat arch enemy Adelaide into submission on Saturday, crunching the Crows by 55 points in the first AFL game at a redeveloped Adelaide Oval.
For winning coach Ken Hinkley, the Power’s 19.14 (128) to 11.7 (73) triumph before a sell-out 50,397 crowd was more than an historic victory – it was a homecoming.
Until Saturday, Port had spent their AFL era playing at the now-defunct Football Park stadium – a ground they believed was the home of the Crows.
But now, Hinkley reckons the Power have claimed the newly-completed $535 million Adelaide Oval as their own.
Asked about the magnitude of an occasion which captivated an entire city, Hinkley replied: “I was going to say scared shitless.
“This whole fortnight has been pretty big for us as a football club and our supporters.
“We were coming home to Adelaide Oval – we won 21 (SANFL) flags here.
“We wanted to … come back home and make it feel like it was home. And our fans and our players, together they made it feel like home today.”
Port emphatically won the initial battle in what will become a long-time turf war with the Crows.
After being awarded the first AFL home game at the revamped oval, Port kept getting the firsts: the first kick (though Ollie Wines’ effort was part-smothered); the first goal (Matthew Lobbe, just 76 seconds into the game).
Crucially, they kept getting the ball first – smashing the fumbling Crows in winning six centre clearances to one in the first quarter.
That midfield dominance, inspired by Hamish Hartlett, Brad Ebert and Jared Polec, enabled Port to create a 28-point lead at the first change.
But Adelaide’s crafty recruit Eddie Betts then paid his way, kicking three goals in the second stanza as the Crows clawed their way back.
Betts potted another in the third term and his teammate Brodie Smith soon after goaled on run and the Crows had stolen a lead for the first time.
Their joy was brief: the Power responded with an incredible surge – five goals in 14 minutes and Port held a defining 30-point break at the last change.
Hartlett then capped his best-afield 29 disposal display with a goal early in the last and Port were home – in both senses of the word, according to Hinkley.
The result hurt Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson, who described his side’s basic skill blunders and the heavy losing margin as “unacceptable”.
“We had too many passengers, we had too many guys who didn’t contribute,” said Sanderson, whose Crows are win-less from two games this season.
“Seven or eight players could probably walk out of the changerooms with their chin up. The rest have got to have a good hard look at how they played.”
