PORT Adelaide's resurrection from a horror start to the season has continued, with the Power putting together a convincing 64-point win over Essendon at Telstra Dome on Sunday evening.
The Power, formerly 0-4 this season, are now 3-4 after putting together a triple-hit of triumphs, including their most recent and most dominating display of 24.14 (158) to 15.4 (94) against the Bombers.
Forward Daniel Motlop was simply electric with 7.2, while Steven Salopek was virtually unopposed all evening to end with 33 touches and three goals. Danyle Pearce was again effective two weeks after being dropped with 18 touches and six tackles, while Robert Gray – who came in for the injured Chad Cornes – kicked three goals.
The Burgoyne brothers were also in control against Henry Slattery and Leroy Jetta, while Kane Cornes picked up 29 possessions while running with Brent Stanton.
The Bombers, while the scoreline was unflattering margin-wise, kicked straight and were led by skipper Matthew Lloyd (five goals) and Jobe Watson (21 disposals and four clearances), while NAB Rising Star nominee Bachar Houli had the impressive stats of 26 touches and seven tackles.
With a spate of injuries currently afflicting his side, Matthew Knights brought in three debutants. Unfortunately, it was not an occasion to be celebrated for David Myers, Darcy Daniher and Jarrod Atkinson, as the Power racked up their fourth straight win over the red and black.
Myers had 14 touches, Atkinson 10, and the highly-anticipated Daniher, who was one of many to spend time on Motlop, had four.
It was largely one-way traffic in the first quarter as Essendon got handball happy while the Power found their targets by foot on nearly twice as many occasions.
Port Adelaide had 19 points on the board by the time Essendon booted its first goal, with Motlop, Salopek and David Rodan all imposing themselves on the scoreboard early on.
The Bombers got the break they needed when Lloyd won a free kick within range, and the skipper would go on to provide his side with its only other six-pointer for the term after taking a flying mark in front of a pack 15 minutes later.
The defensive side to Essendon's game failed to stand up early, and with the Power dominating in the ruck and making the most of their forward thrusts, the difference was quickly 27 points, where it stayed until quarter-time.
The second term tested the Bombers' back four of Mal Michael, Andrew Welsh, Nathan Lovett-Murray and Courtney Johns even further. The quarter threw up 17 inside 50s to eight in favour of Power.
Unfortunately for the Bombers, this resulted in the Power slamming through four straight majors midway through the term, which blew the margin to 57 points.
Motlop was the brightest star up forward with three second-term goals. So dominant was his display, he shrugged off four different opponents to torture the Bombers, with a booming 50m goal at the 20-minute-mark one of the highlights.
The Bombers, seemingly on the canvas after witnessing the Motlop show, picked themselves up and replied with two goals, but their hard work went begging when the Power put on a training drill to steal the ball from the next centre clearance and manoeuvre it through the big sticks without an Essendon player touching it.
However, Watson collected the ball and romped into goal a minute later, and although a free kick to Paddy Ryder that resulted in another one soon after was quickly nullified by a Brett Ebert major, the halftime difference was a more manageable 45 points.
With Melbourne's remarkable come-from-behind victory over Fremantle proving anything is possible, the Bombers entered the second half full of optimism – and it was rewarded within four minutes with Jay Neagle kicking the first goal of the third.
But for every positive charge the Bombers made, the Power found something extra. Motlop, back with Slattery as an opponent again, booted the next two, including one that involved some clever dance moves as he twirled around two players to nominate himself for Goal of the Year.
The margin hit 59 points twice in the term but the Bombers managed two late goals to keep things relatively nice. But, again they faded in the dying stages and stood by as Justin Westhoff ran unopposed through the goal-square to push the difference back to 53 points.
With the sting gone from the game, scoring dried up and Adam McPhee was reported for a bump on Travis Boak.
Essendon's next home-and-away appointment will take place in the Harbour City, when it meets Sydney at ANZ Stadium on Sunday May 18. Port Adelaide will travel to Tasmania to meet Hawthorn at Aurora Stadium on Saturday May 17.
The Bombers were also a chance to have five players participate in next Saturday night's Hall of Fame Tribute match, but injury has culled that list back to three. Victoria's Dustin Fletcher (groin) is expected to be out for two to three weeks while young gun Alwyn Davey (knee) will miss for the Dream Team.
Still in contention to appear for Victoria are David Hille, Brent Stanton and Lloyd, while the Power could have three out of four of their Dream Team squad members play with Shaun and Peter Burgoyne, and Kane Cornes all chances. Chad Cornes will miss after breaking his finger last weekend.
Essendon: 2.1 8.1 12.2 15.4 (94)
Port Adelaide: 6.4 14.10 19.13 24.14 (158)
GOALS:
Essendon: Lloyd 5, Neagle 2, Lovett 2, McPhee, Watson, Ryder, Hislop, Hille, Welsh
Port Adelaide: Motlop 7, Gray 3, Salopek 3, Ebert 2, S. Burgoyne 2, Rodan, Tredrea, Cassisi, Boak, Westhoff, Brogan, Chaplin
BEST
Essendon: Lloyd, Houli, Welsh, Watson, Hille
Port Adelaide: Salopek, Motlop, S. Burgoyne, Pearce, Cassisi, Chaplin
INJURIES
Essendon: Nil
Port Adelaide: Tredrea (corked leg)
Reports: McPhee (Essendon) reported for rough conduct on Boak (Port Adelaide) by umpire Ellis in the fourth quarter
Umpires: Nicholls, Ellis, Mollison
Official crowd: 28,409 at Telstra Dome
