Before the 2014 season began many dubbed Port Adelaide to fall out of the top eight. But after four rounds the tide has turned.
If members of the AFL community did tip Port Adelaide to retain a finals place it certainly wasn’t in a top-four position. Bruce McAvaney raised people’s eyebrows claiming Port Adelaide were a premiership contender.
After a Round 1 victory against Carlton, a fellow Roar writer was brave enough to express his opinion on why he had the team from Alberton as his premiership favourites. The Australian public decided not to judge where Port Adelaide were as a team after one round.
The Power started to gather the attention of many AFL commentators during the week after pummeling the Crows to claim the first Showdown at Adelaide Oval. Port Adelaide had established themselves to many as top four contenders after only two rounds.
Ken Hinkley’s men contributed to the awful opening season starts of Carlton and Adelaide.
Port Adelaide had to face up against North Melbourne, another club considered as top four contenders. North Melbourne was in a perfect place for Port Adelaide to make it 3–0, as they had come off a not so pretty win and an ugly loss.
The Kangaroos prevailed against the Power in a game which was fought to the very end. The team lead by Travis Boak looked to be worn out or had a ‘hangover’ from the previous big game. North Melbourne continues to be one of Port Adelaide’s bogey teams.
The loss caused the spotlight to dim on Port as some thought predictions of a top-four finish were premature.
David King slammed Port Adelaide in the week following the loss, claiming they were “fat heads” for expecting to win over the Kangaroos. Hinkley fired back at King’s assumptions, which made back page of The Adelaide Advertiser the day of the Power’s Round 4 clash with the Brisbane Lions.
Port Adelaide turned heads once again, destroying the Queensland team by a triple-digit margin. The Power did not ease off the Lions during the fourth quarter either, kicking six majors in the last.
The top four talk was back.
Recognised as the hardest road trip in modern day football, the West Coast awaited Port Adelaide. Essendon were portrayed victims of Perth’s heat but the Power was ready to thrive in the conditions at Patterson’s stadium according to AFL 360 host and ABC commentator Gerard Whateley. The Power had completed a preseason training camp in Dubai.
The Eagles and Power fought a highly contested game of footy. The Power edged out West Coast by 16 points in comfortable conditions at Perth.
The club which was seen as a basket case 18 months ago has now cemented themselves as top four contenders. Port Adelaide’s wins may have come from out of form teams, but the fashion in which they were won certified their top four credentials. The Power has made their mark as one of the best ‘coast to coast’ teams in the AFL.
They currently sit second on the ladder and their twilight clash against Geelong on Sunday could see them leap over the Cats to sit on top of the competition. If Port Adelaide does beat Geelong the talk of premiership contenders may begin, but they aren’t challengers yet.
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