THERE was a stack of things to take out of Thursday night's game between the Power and Tigers. Here's four of them...
1. Charlie Dixon is scary
He only played a half and his impact faded later in the match, but his first few minutes were enough to satisfy Port Adelaide supporters. They were minutes of hard-hitting, big-tackling highlights with a goal to top it off.
Fans will be hoping for a few more come Round 1.
Here's a video that shows what a 202cm/110kg behemoth can do
2. The misfits are fitting right in
Sam Gray was an old man by draft standards when he was brought onto Port Adelaide's AFL list, Brendon Ah Chee took four years to develop into an AFL-standard midfielder and Jake Neade is the most unlikely of powerful footballers, but these three were among the Power's best on Thursday night.
Their efforts were very positive as they push to prove their form last year was no one-off.
3. There's something between Port and Richmond
Some rivalries start up because of close, hard-fought contests - for Port, that rival was once Brisbane. Some rivalries are bred through local enmity, like that between Port and the Crows. And then there's Port and Richmond.
The heat in the battle of what was a NAB Challenge game, the melees, the forehead kisses - there's something far deeper between these two sides.
Could it simply be something to do with the number of personnel to move between the two clubs? Maybe it's that 2014 elimination final? We might dig a little deeper on this one...
4. What's it all about anyway?
Oh man. The NAB 'Challenge' - this three-practice match national roadshow with no trophy of cash prize - hasn't really made things more exciting in summer has it?
When you bundle in long trips to the far reaches of Australia, the intense heat of summer, teams playing to different strategies when regular rules aren't in play and the risk of injury when nothing is on the line, it really makes you wonder why the format exists as it does.
It's a format that needs something done to it and maybe the answer is to make it shorter. Ken Hinkley would like that.
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