Round 20 SHOWDOWN XII
	V
Port Adelaide 12.12 (84)		Adelaide 11.10 (76)

Port Adelaide has extended its Showdown winning streak to five games with a hard-fought eight-point win over Adelaide before a record crowd of 50,275 at AAMI Stadium.

The classic contest lived up to the unprecedented pre-match hype with both sides going in hard at the ball all day. But it was the Power who were able to maintain their poise, earning a 12.12 (84) to 11.10 victory.

The pressure-cooker atmosphere produced a tight opening quarter with both sides keen to exert a physical presence in the centre square.

After a bright start, the Crows found themselves on the back foot as Power captain Matthew Primus began to get the better of his ruck duel with Rhett Biglands.

The Power looked more dangerous moving forward with Chad Cornes, the standout forward on the field, collecting 10 first quarter possessions.

Port had a seven-point lead at the first break and set about pressing home its advantage as the second quarter got underway.

The Power’s use of the ball was cleaner than Adelaide’s and the pressure that created led to some basic skill errors creeping into the Crows' game.

However, Adelaide - mainly through the good work of Chris Ladhams - managed to stay with the Power and trailed by only five points at half time.

The ill-feeling that had been simmering between the two sides boiled over after a Mark Bickley bump on Darryl Wakelin saw the Port defender leave the ground in obvious distress just prior to the main break.

Several skirmishes erupted around the ground after that incident before the siren sounded to send the combatants to their separate corners to regroup.

The stage was set for a titanic third quarter but what ensued was more akin to an arm wrestle than a shootout. Goals dried up for both sides with the pressure of the occasion appearing to affect most players on the ground.

Josh Francou, however, thrived on the pressure and exploded into action - his 15 possessions for the term helping the Power to a seven-point lead at the final break.

Port Adelaide regained its composure first, snatching the momentum from the Crows in the opening minutes of the last quarter.

Goals to Brent Guerra and Peter Burgoyne stretched the lead out to 19-points before a spectacular mark and goal from Mark Stevens gave Adelaide a glimmer of hope.

But that hope was effectively snuffed out when Josh Carr added his second goal for the match to give the Power a 13-point buffer in the dying minutes of the game.

Stevens marked in the final seconds and converted after the siren but Power fans were already celebrating a hard-earned victory by that stage.

Power coach Mark Williams was happy with the win, but the injury to Wakelin may have taken some of the gloss from the victory for him.

“I was really disappointed with Darryl Wakelin getting injured but, apart from that, it was a very competitive game played at a really great pace,” he said.

“There was great attack on the ball, lots of tackles, lots of hold-ups and I was pleased that our guys kept gutsing it out.”

A subdued Williams was clearly concerned at the possibility of losing Wakelin for the remainder of the season.

“Wakelin, as far as I can see, is (worthy of) All-Australian status compared to the other full backs, so it’s a huge blow to us,” he said.

“I don’t know the extent of his injury but it’s impossible to just pick and choose and say ‘oh well, we’ve got another one of those (players) hanging around’ - we just don’t, so it’s a huge concern for us.”

Adelaide coach Gary Ayres admitted his side had been outplayed on the day, but was able to take some positives from the defeat.

“I think where they were better than us today was their ability to just use the ball better by hand and foot,” he said.

"I thought we just didn’t make enough of the opportunities in those areas that we had. But, by the same token, we had a lot of kids out there today and I think they can get better having played under that type of finals pressure.”

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