Expert
It’s a case of deja vu for Port Adelaide who have had a win stolen from them by West Coast after the siren at Adelaide Oval for the second time in 12 months.
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Final score
Port Adelaide Power 9.4.58
West Coast Eagles 9.8.62
The West Coast Eagles will look to continue their perfect record against the Port Adelaide Power when the two clubs meet in a crucial Round 21 contest. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from 4:35pm (AEST).
In four trips to the Adelaide Oval, the Eagles have an unblemished record against Port Adelaide, which included an elimination final last year going to extra time.
It was a shocking way to end the season for the Power, who find themselves in a spot of bother just a few rounds from the end of the season.
With a difficult run home, featuring this match and one against Collingwood on the road next week, they are right on the edge of the top eight and teetering on the brink of playing finals footy again.
The Power have been hurt badly by two losses in the last three weeks. A home loss to the GWS Giants by 22 points seemed to expose where the club are truly at, but last week’s heartbreaking three-point loss to cross-town rivals the Crows would have stung.
It leaves them on 48 points, level with the Sydney Swans and fending off a pack of chasers on 44 featuring Geelong and North Melbourne.
With such a tight race for the eight, every game becomes crucial. It could well come down to percentage, so the Power, even if they lose, need to not bleed points.
The Eagles have obviously had a tumultuous week off the field following the Andrew Gaff incident last Sunday against Fremantle. While they came out of that match with a 58-point win, the West Coast will be without one of their best for the remainder of the season.
Still, they have been in superb touch.
Last week’s victory means the Eagles have won four of their last five, with the run of victories propelling them to second in the competition.
They have a six-point buffer to the Giants, and a win here would more or less ensure a home final in the first week of action.
The Eagles’ forward line had a field day last weekend, but that was set up by excellent games by their half-forward line in Jamie Cripps, Jack Darling and Willie Rioli. The trio seem the key for the Eagles if they are going to win against at the Adelaide Oval.
Don’t expect this to be high-scoring though. The Power have the second-best defensive record in the competition, followed by the Eagles who are fifth.
Prediction
Even if the Power are desperate – and they most certainly will be – it won’t be enough to stop the Eagles, who, even without Andrew Gaff, should take care of this contest in a pretty straightforward manner.
Eagles by 18.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of this Round 21 match from 4:35pm (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.
Preview written by Scott Pryde.