Port Adelaide maintained their position at the top of the SANFL ladder on Sunday afternoon, defeating a hard-working Woodville-West Torrens by 23 points.

Playing in front of the 1994 SANFL premiership team who celebrated the 20th anniversary of their famous victory over the Eagles in 1994, the Magpies got out to an early lead and then worked hard to keep the Eagles at bay over the next three quarters.

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Mason Shaw continued his good form after returning from a wrist injury with a dominant six-goal haul.

Captain Steven Summerton and on-baller Sam Gray together collected 44 disposals in a first half effort that saw the Magpies regularly break from the centre.

The momentum generated by the on-ball brigade, helped by a further 17 disposals from centreman Ben Newton, enabled Port to kick the next three goals of the game and establish a three-goal lead at the first break.

Again, a Daniel Flynn run that started at half back and wound its way through the centre of the ground brought the crowd to life, finding John Butcher straight in front 20 metres out and resulting in a Magpie goal.

But as rain fell midway through the second quarter, so too did the Eagles fight back into the contest, matching Port's four goals against the breeze.

It kept them in the hunt and they didn't let the opportunity slip.

The Eagles piled on five goals to the Magpies' two in the third quarter and worked hard to draw within seven points at the final change.

Speedy Irishman Daniel Flynn once again got everybody talking, although this time for a bump on Chris Kane on the wing, which resulted in the umpire penning his number down for referral to the SANFL's incident review panel.

The incident rallied the Eagles and they raised the intensity of the game again - mounting a late charge through Grocke and Ainger to get within one straight kick halfway through the final term.

The breeze died in the last term and the Magpies were able to regain their composure and finish the game with goals to Shaw and Summerton to confirm its ninth victory for the year.

SANFL Garry Hocking was disappointed with the team's defensive work after another game where a large lead has been progressively reeled in.

“We’re in a flat spot defensively, they had 44 inside 50’s today compared to 25 last time," Hocking said.

“We’re starting well, but at the moment we just can’t maintain the rage.

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When asked about the club now sitting two games clear at the top of the ladder, Hocking was quick to point out the challenges.

“To be honest, I don’t look at the ladder," he said.

"Where we are is a great reward for the players and coaches, but we still have challenges ahead - West are a top five side and Sturt are one of the best teams this year."

Port Adelaide plays West Adelaide at Richmond Oval next Sunday 22 June.

SCOREBOARD
PORT ADELAIDE                          6.3      10.8      12.14      18.16 (124)
WOODVILLE-WEST TORRENS      3.3      7.4       12.7       15.11 (101)

portadelaidefc.com.au’s best
S. Gray, Newton, Summerton, Shaw, Logan, Ah Chee

Goals
Shaw 6, Butcher 3, Ah Chee, Logan 2, Summerton, Krakouer, Biemans, Harvey, Neade

Injuries
TBC

Reports
Daniel Flynn in the third quarter

Crowd
2,393 at Alberton Oval