Port Adelaide’s defence has come under fire after Thursday night’s home loss to Carlton after the Power came undone in the fourth quarter.
Ken Hinkley’s side conceded eight goals in the final term — including 7.1 from stoppage alone — as it was put to the sword on its home deck by a rampaging Blues led by three goals each to Charlie Curnow and Harry McKay.
It saw Port fall to 8-4 — the same record as Carlton — in what’s otherwise been a strong season from the Power, who remain third on the ladder with the rest of Round 12 still to play out ahead of the club’s bye.
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However speaking post-match, Hawks champion Jason Dunstall doubled down on his pre-game take that the Power were a “fake top four team,” saying “a few concerns” remain including their “lack of defence”.
“It leaked like a sieve when the ball started to go in there,” Dunstall said of Port’s defence on Fox Footy.
“As I said, the old fake top four team, Port Adelaide, don’t know where they go from here.”
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It came after Port Adelaide brought in trade recruits Esava Ratugolea and Brandon Zerk-Thatcher in the off-season to bolster its defence and add support to Aliir Aliir.
But after the Power’s defence appeared improved in the early rounds, it’s since regressed, having dropped to 10th in the AFL in points against and 15th in conceding points from turnovers from Rounds 6-11.
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“It’s a problem, I’ve never seen a stoppage quarter like it — 7.1 (to Carlton) in 30 minutes of footy,” dual premiership Kangaroo David King said of the one-sided fourth-quarter blitz.
“They’ve got some gamblers Port Adelaide and some guys who are prepared to roll the dice.
“When you get it wrong and roll snake eyes, you pay a price. You just shouldn’t be able to kick 7.1 in a quarter from stoppage.
“It’s sight unseen for me. It’ll be the highest for 15 or 20 years, that’s the levels we’re talking about. And it’ll be against teams that are also rans or welded to the bottom of the table.
“Port Adelaide at home, supposed to be legit in 2024. Uh-uh.”
Watching back highlights of Curnow and McKay, Dunstall observed Port’s defence looked under siege all night and thinks the Blues twin towers could’ve really gotten off the leash.
“The Port defenders, to be brutally honest, were horrible in one-on-ones,” he said.
“You could see the pressure they were facing, Zerk-Thatcher had a pretty dirty night.
“They pretty much did as they like and probably would reflect on this game and think: ‘Probably could’ve kicked four or five (goals), could’ve been a better night’.”
Source Agencies
