PORT Adelaide has received another setback, losing to in-form Geelong in poor conditions at AAMI Stadium.
The Cats, who have beaten West Coast and Fremantle in the past fortnight, dominated from the start and ran out easy 56-point winners, 16.20 (116) to 8.12 (60).
It was only the second time in eight years that Geelong has beaten the Power away from home.
The game was a tale of two halves with the Power fighting back to claim the dour rain-affected second half, six goals to three.
But it was Geelong’s brilliant start that put the game beyond Port Adelaide’s reach.
From the word go, the Power backed themselves against the talented Geelong midfield - a decision that did not pay dividends.
The Cats’ prime-movers in Jimmy Bartel (26 possessions and 2.1), Joel Corey (29) and Gary Ablett Jr (25 and 1.3) put on an exhibition, outclassing their Power opponents.
With rain threatening in the first quarter, Geelong didn’t pussy-foot around.
The Cats piled on five goals to the Power’s solitary major from Dom Cassisi.
Cam Mooney directed the Geelong traffic across half-forward, forcing Mark Williams to replace the smaller Michael Pettigrew with seasoned full-back Darryl Wakelin.
Nathan Ablett also caused the Power some headaches, slotting through a goal of his own and setting up another.
Travis Varcoe and Max Rooke proved a dynamic duo up forward with three goals between them.
The Power had their fair share of forward entries but continually played into the hands of the Geelong defenders with ill-directed long bombs.
The quarter was made worse for the Power with dangerous forward Daniel Motlop injuring his troublesome shoulder in the opening minute of the game.
Port Adelaide didn’t fare much better in the second quarter, managing just five forward 50m entries to Geelong’s 20.
The Power onballers couldn’t get a handle on the greasy conditions while their Geelong counterparts in Matthew Stokes, Steve Johnson and Cameron Ling all pushed forward to register goals.
The classiest Cat, Gary Ablett Jr weaved his way to goal and suddenly the Power trailed by eight goals.
Brett Ebert and Warren Tredrea combined to give Power supporters a glimmer of hope, with Tredrea getting on the end of an Ebert bomb.
But that hope was soon snuffed out with two long-range goals in a minute from Jimmy Bartel, adding insult to the Power’s wounds and giving Geelong a 71-point lead at the main break.
The Power’s intensity increased in the second half as the rain set in.
Accountable defender Toby Thurstans dived across the goal line in the opening minute, getting a hand to a sure-goal and preventing another quick Cats start.
Kane Cornes (36 possessions), Jacob Surjan (24), Greg Bentley (19) and David Rodan (24) battled hard to give Port Adelaide the edge at the clearances.
Their work was rewarded when Peter Burgoyne managed to break free from Cameron Ling and converted a freakish across his body.
Determined to reclaim some pride in this Indigenous round clash, Shaun Burgoyne followed his brother’s lead to claim his first goal of the game.
Burgoyne showcased his trademark stoppage work, reading the ball off hands from Damon White and bursting through to an open goal.
But the Power failed to make the most of their opportunities, adding a further six behinds to the score line to still trail by 65 points at the final break.
The final term was a mere formality, but Port Adelaide continued to tough it out.
Late goals to Rodan, Ebert and Krakouer gave the Power some respectability but the result was never in doubt.
Geelong 5.4 13.9 14.15 16.20 (116)
Port Adelaide 1.3 2.4 4.10 8.12 (60)
GOALSGeelong: M Rooke 3, J Bartel 2, S Johnson 2, C Mooney 2, D Wojcinski 2, G Ablett, N Ablett, C Ling, M Stokes, T Varcoe. Port Adelaide: D Rodan 2, P Burgoyne, S Burgoyne, D Cassisi, B Ebert, N Krakouer, W Tredrea.
BEST: Geelong: J Bartel, J Corey, B Ottens, G Ablett, D Wojcinski, D Milburn, K Tenace, C Ling. Port Adelaide: C Cornes, D Rodan, K Cornes.
INJURIESGeelong: Nil.Port Adelaide: Motlop (collarbone)
REPORTS: Nil.
Umpires: M James M Stevic M Avon.
Official crowd: 26,465 at AAMI Stadium.
