Heavy rain tumbled before and throughout Port Adelaide and North Adelaide’s SANFL clash, with the Magpies wet weather footy outclassing the reigning premiers to win by 42 points at Prospect Oval.  

Justin Westhoff, Sam Powell-Pepper, Paddy Ryder, Jarrod Lienert and Tom Rockliff joined the line-up for the clash, each having a major influence in the prison bars.

Rockliff finished with a whopping 57 disposals, 12 tackles and 14 clearances while Westhoff had 37 disposals and three goals, Powell-Pepper 33 disposals, Lienert 28 disposals and Ryder dominated the ruck with 34 hitouts and two goals.

The Magpies starting midfield included Ryder, Powell-Pepper, Rockliff and Joe Atley but it was the Roosters who started brighter and found the opening goal through Tom Schwarz at the four-minute mark.

Westhoff drifted forward three minutes later and found space inside 50m to kick Port’s first goal before supporters were again running from the rain.

In usual Trent McKenzie style, ‘The Cannon’ gathered the ball 50m out and booted a goal from a pack to put the Magpies in front, but it didn’t last long as North levelled the scores minutes later with another major.

Westhoff had a big first quarter, gathering 11 disposals, but the scores were level at 15 apiece at the first break.

Port lifted the intensity during the second term and piled on two early goals through Aidyn Johnson and Ryder as Westhoff continued to patrol the half back line.

Johnson booted his second goal nine minutes into the second term and the Magpies lead was out to 18 points at the 10 minute mark.

After Port dominated the inside 50s early in the second term, the Roosters began to force the ball forward, but the Magpies defence held firm with Marty Frederick running back with the flight to save a certain goal.

Eventually the Roosters broke through with back to back goals to Lewis Hender to reduce the margin back to single digits.

Westhoff, who gathered 20 disposals in the first half kicked truly late in the half for his second to steady and give the Magpies a handy 12-point lead at the major break.

Boyd Woodcock gave Port the best possible start to the third quarter with a goal in the opening two minutes, before ruckman Sam Hayes marked and goaled two minutes later.

As the ball got slipperier and the cricket pitch got muddier, it mattered little for the Magpies who continued to march on.

After trailing in the clearances during the first half Ryder and Rockliff started to dominate in that area and continuously drove the ball forward.

Port had five goals in a row when 197cm Ryder got low and crumbed a goal in the goal square and Jarrod Lienert unloaded on a set shot from 55m to give their side a 37-point lead late in the term.

Rockliff brought up his 40^th disposal during the third quarter as the Magpies led by 36 points at the last break.

Neither side could manage another major score until the 12-minute mark of the final term as North tried to lock down the Magpies damage.

Hender kicked his third to give the Roosters their first goal since midway through the second quarter, before key forwards Todd Marshall and Billy Frampton found their first goals.  

To conclude his dominant performance, Westhoff fittingly kicked the final goal of the day to give Port a 13.6-84 to 6.6-42 win. 

SCORE:

Port: 2.3, 6.4, 10.5, 13.6 (84)

North: 2.3, 4.4, 4.5, 6.6 (42)

BEST: Rockliff, Westhoff, Ryder, Marshall, Lienert, Frederick.

DISPOSALS: Rockliff 57, Westhoff 37, Powell-Pepper 33, Lienert 28.

GOALS: Westhoff 3, Johnson 2, Ryder 2, Frampton, Hayes, Lienert, Marshall, McKenzie, Woodcock 1.