Port Adelaide have clobbered North Melbourne by 70 points to consolidate their spot in the AFL’s top four.

The Power were never threatened by the struggling Roos, winning 19.13 (127) to 8.9 (57) in a Saturday afternoon mismatch at Adelaide Oval.

Port ruthlessly dismantled North with a stunning eight-goal opening quarter which laid the platform for their 10th win of the season.

The result was effectively decided in a dozen minutes, when the Power kicked four unanswered goals and North lost a player to injury – defender Mitchell Hibberd didn’t return after hurting a shoulder.

Port’s mercurial Chad Wingard was a key factor in the opening onslaught, kicking three goals for the term with fellow small forward Sam Gray slotting two of his four majors in the quarter.

Wingard was outstanding with 30 disposals while ruckman Paddy Ryder dominated Todd Goldstein – the Power tall recorded 37 hit-outs in an influential display.

Ryder’s command enabled Port midfielders Ollie Wines (31 touches), Brad Ebert (30 disposals) and Sam Powell-Pepper (two goals, 26 possessions) to run rampant, while swingman Justin Westhoff was prominent with 27 disposals.

The second-last Roos had six players with less than 10 games’ experience and were at least able to restore some parity in the second quarter when both teams kicked three goals.

But the visitors were outscored eight goals to three in a tame last half, despite the best efforts of seasoned onballers Ben Cunnington, who collected a game-high 33 disposals, and Shaun Higgins (26 touches, one goal).

North forward Ben Brown booted three goals from limited opportunities and Shaun Atley scored two.