IT just had to be Robbie Gray.
The man who sunk St Kilda with a running goal from a boundary throw-in at the northern end of Adelaide Oval in 2017 has now done it with a match-winning behind at Cazalys Stadium in Cairns.
Gray's snap with 31 seconds to play gave Port Adelaide a hard-earned one-point win that ends St Kilda's five-game winning run - and has Port Adelaide building meaningful momentum with consecutive wins while the AFL competition becomes an increasingly wild race to September.
Gray's match-winning kick - one he initially lamented for missing the goals - adds to his remarkable record when AFL matches are on the line.
But it was much more than that golden behind that made Gray much, much more than the man of the moment again in Queensland (where he sank Carlton with a goal after the siren at the Gabba in 2020). Gray was the man of the match that had Port Adelaide in front on the scoreboard for less than 14 minutes - and reaffirmed that Ken Hinkley's team will never, ever give up.
Gray featured in all of Port Adelaide's three goals during the third term that turned significantly while Port Adelaide's defence gained command of the air with brave reading of the play by in-form defender Ryan Burton and Aliir Aliir in his third game on return from ankle surgery.
Burton finished with a game-high nine marks - and created a phenomenal gain of 834 metres with his 25 disposals. Equally powerful in dealing with St Kilda's midfield threats was Brownlow Medallist Ollie Wines who thrived in tough conditions to earn all of his 27 disposals.
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Port Adelaide is now 2-5 and has claimed the scalp of a team that was ranked equal second at the start of the round. It was not always pretty - in an environment that did not allow for polished football - but it once again highlighted that Hinkley's squad, after a 0-5 start, still believes it has a part to play in the race to the AFL top eight.
Conditions at match time were true to the image of tropical north Queensland with the 88 per cent humidity notable with the test posed to every player handling a slippery Sherrin that glistened from the dew gathered off an easily chopped-up grassy surface.
And, as expected at a ground where scoring 11 goals can be enough for victory, the scoreboard never rewarded the teams for their eagerness to find the goals. The final scoreline -5.13 (43) to 4.18 (42) - marks the lowest-scoring AFL game played with regulation 20-minute quarters at Cazalys. The combined 85 points replaces the 94 (7.13 and 5.9) from the Gold Coast win against North Melbourne in March 2018.
Port Adelaide gave St Kilda a 10-minute head start - and a 14-point lead that took until midway through the third term to clear away off the class of 34-year-old, 259-game Gray. He featured in all of Port Adelaide's three goals - two from his own boot and with the assist to wingman Kane Farrell - during the third term.
It took 90 minutes in total for Port Adelaide to have the lead for the first time with midfielder Karl Amon's behind in the 13th minute of the last term. It became two points with Sam Powell-Pepper's miss; three points with the behind scored by defender Riley Bonner - and zero when Aliir rushed a behind with 3:25 to play.
St Kilda led on a rushed behind with 2:31 left on the clock. Port Adelaide midfielder Zak Butters restored the deadlock with his behind at 1:39. And then Robbie Gray did as Robbie Gray often does with 31 seconds to play.
This game was of replica book ends. St Kilda was assertive at the start. Port Adelaide was productive at the end, even if it won the match while scoring 1.7 while dominating the inside-50 rush (that finished at 61-56 in St Kilda's favour after a dominant first term of 24 inside-50s).
St Kilda commanded forward-half territory and play in the first quarter - with a hefty advantage of 24-8 inside-50s and plus-14 count on the ultimate barometer of contested football - but managed just two goals. Port Adelaide put on the scoreboard just two behinds - both from snaps by Jeremy Finlayson and Wines - while again lacking a convincing target or imposing set-up in attack.
The inside-50 counter turned to Port Adelaide's favour during the second term, but the scoring was not any easier. The goal drought in the wetlands was broken by Wines with an quickfire snap over his shoulder in a crowd during the fifth minute of the second term - and should have continued with Powell-Pepper and Mitch Georgiades at set shots that went across the left of the goalfront.
Telling for Port Adelaide was the team generated no score for the rest of the second quarter after Georgiades' attempt in the 10th minute. This is despite winning the inside-50 count 14-12 during this term when Finlayson came off the ground with a back injury; (he returned after half-time to cop more batterings in marking contests).
St Kilda had its own problems in chasing goals, falling into its own drought after Jack Higgins scored his team's third goal in the third minute of the second term. This was followed by a sequence of 10 behinds - including set shots missed by key forward Max King and Jack Higgins during the third term after Gray had squared the scoreboard at 28-28 in the 16th minute.
Port Adelaide's defence, led by the intercept marks and spoils of All-Australian key defender Aliir, ensured the team stayed in touch with St Kilda as the quarter-time deficit of 13 points was extended by just one point to 14 at half-time when the combined score was 4.10.
The marking numbers - in slippery conditions - of fellow Port Adelaide defenders Burton (nine), Dan Houston (seven) and Riley Bonner (six) after quarter-time told of the roadblocks that put St Kilda on an inaccurate path to the goalfront.
Port Adelaide key defender Tom Clurey was handed the major challenge of duelling with St Kilda high-flying spearhead King. He kept King to just one goal - from a questionable free kick (and 50-metre penalty with dissent) - at half-time; and his second and last in the opening minutes of the final term to end St Kilda's run of 10 consecutive behinds.
The battle of former mentor (Patrick Ryder) and pupil (Sam Hayes) in ruck finished with Ryder, who often commanded front position at boundary throw-ins, having 27 hit-outs, Hayes, 12. On the disposal count, Ryder won 8-7.
Hayes will take such numbers as a fair night's work against such an accomplished and experienced ruckman as Ryder. And Hayes' field play in his third AFL game continued to improve with some very sure overhead marks.
Port Adelaide's counter to the ruck pairing of Ryder and AFL journeyman Tom Campbell brought one surprise - the repeated use of half-forward Powell-Pepper as a ruckman.
Port Adelaide started with the same 22 who overwhelmed West Coast by 84 points at Adelaide Oval last Saturday, but recalled wingman Xavier Duursma to replace defender Lachie Jones as the medical substitute.
Duursma replaced key forward Mitch Georgiades (calf) during the last term.
ST KILDA v PORT ADELAIDE
PORT ADELAIDE 0.2 1.4 4.6 5.13 (43)
ST KILDA 2.3 3.6 3.13 4.18 (42)
BEST - Port Adelaide: Burton, Wines, Gray, Boak, Houston, Powell-Pepper, Clurey.
GOALS - Port Adelaide: Gray 2, Farrell, Marshall, Wines.
INJURY: Georgiades (calf); Finlayson (back).
MEDICAL SUBSTITUTE: Xavier Duursma (replaced Mitch Georgiades in the last term).
CROWD: 6645 at Cazalys Stadium, Cairns.
NEXT: v Western Bulldogs at Adelaide Oval on Friday.
