PORT ADELAIDE has gone down by 14 points to Adelaide in a SANFL trial game at Alberton Oval.
A Port Adelaide side playing together for the first time and featuring a host of new faces pushed the Crows all the way but trailed all day before coming home strong to give the visitors a scare.
Trailing by 38 points deep in the third quarter, an inaccurate Port managed the next five goals to make it a much closer final margin – the game finishing 6.16 (52) to 9.12 (66)
It was a strong start by the home side with skipper Cam Sutcliffe getting clean hands on the ball early but the midfield dominance not rewarded up forward.
Despite Port settling better, the Crows had the first two goals through Riley Thilthorpe and Lachie Gollant.
West Adelaide recruit Aryan Sareen missed a good chance to get his side’s first and it was instead Dylan Williams with some clever composed play in traffic who snapped home nicely on his right foot for his first major.
Young forward Ollie Lord took some strong marks in the middle of the ground on the more experienced Elliot Himmelberg while covering Sam Hayes in the ruck, and Port went in a goal behind at the first change.
Port Adelaide peppered the goals early in the second term and controlled the ball for large patches but the Crows withstood the pressure and the home side’s inaccuracy kept them in the game.
Jake Pasini and Joel Garner were controlling the backline for Port and setting up attack after attack
A 50-metre penalty under the new man on the mark rules gifted the visitors their first for the quarter with the son of Port Adelaide premiership player Darryl Borlase, James Borlase the recipient.
Their second goal was also the result of a similar infringement - this time Thilthorpe capitalised to boot his second from 25 metres out, and suddenly the margin at the main change was 13 points.
The number two draft pick picked up where he left off in the third term, involving himself in everything that worked for the Crows.
He set up goals to Tariek Newchurch and Himmelberg before marking and booting two of his own, the first around the body from a tight angle and the second a strong mark opposed to the experienced Tyson Goldsack.
With the margin stretched out to 38 points Port started to fight back and managed consecutive goals for the first time in the game.
West Adelaide recruit Ethan Moore cleverly snapped the first after the Yankalilla product roved smartly off a pack inside 50.
A nice passage of play out of the middle involving Sam Hayes, Cam Sutcliffe and Ollie Lord ended with Owen Montgomery marking about 25 metres out on a slight angle.
The son of Port Adelaide AFL defensive coach and 2004 Premiership player Brett Montgomery cooly finished to bring the margin back to 25 points at the final change.
Port kept coming in the last quarter and consecutive goals became five in a row with Sam Mayes, Moore and Woodcock adding majors to close the margin to within a goal.
Woodcock’s outside of the boot goal from 30 metres out was the pick of them and suddenly the home side looked fresher.
Ollie Lord, Ben Edwards and Sam Hayes pulled down some strong marks and as the minutes ticked away, it wasn’t until yet another 50-metre penalty to Adelaide that the Crows were able to ice the game.
Ruckman Kieran Strachan kicked the goal from point blank range and the final margin was 14 points.
SCOREBOARD
PORT ADELAIDE 1.3 1.9 3.12 6.16 (52)
ADELAIDE 2.3 4.4 8.7 9.12 (66)
Goals
Moore 2, Williams, Montgomery, Mayes, Woodcock
