MELBOURNE has emerged from its second bye of the season with a 21-point win at TIO Stadium, and in the process handed Port Adelaide its 14th loss and a ticket to the bottom of the ladder.
Coach Dean Bailey said on Friday he was confident the Demons had handled the weekend off better than their first, when they were beaten by West Coast by 54 points.
And evidently he was right -the proof being in the 17.11 (113) to 14.8 (92) victory at Darwin's TIO Stadium on Saturday night.
The Demons got the result because of a five-goal burst in the third that blew the game apart. And they showed true courage to hold on in the fourth after the Power whittled their 45-point lead back to just 14 with 12 minutes to go.
A goal to Stef Martin at the 20-minute mark halted the Power's run, and slowed up the game after they had surged back into the contest with four unanswered goals.
The Power are now favourites to claim the wooden spoon after being leap-frogged by previous cellar-dwellers Gold Coast who had enjoyed a victory over Richmond earlier in the day.
The match was played in 28-degree heat with 70 per cent humidity, with the majority of Port players donning one glove and a sweatband.
Fewer Melbourne players wore such garments, but it was the Demons who looked the most comfortable with the first four goals of the game.
In fact, it took Port 18 minutes to register a score. Chad Cornes kicked Port's first courtesy of a Jordan Gysberts' turnover in the centre square.
The body language of the Demons was better at the first break as well, with the players jogging to the cool room like they were on a mission, and emerging well before the Power who were trailing by 24 points.
That determination remained with the Demons throughout the match, even when the Power got within three goals on three occasions.
The win gives the Demons a perfect record at TIO Stadium from their two Top End games. They play there due to a deal struck in 2009 which includes Richmond, Western Bulldogs and Port Adelaide.
Influential players
Jack Trengove was significant in the first quarter with two inside 50s and eight possessions - half of which were contested - and three tackles. He finished with 21, while Ricky Petterd had 25 and Mark Jamar, 37 hit-outs, was the dominant big man on the ground, although Matthew Lobbe fought hard.
Liam Jurrah - the Territorian crowd favourite - drew a huge cheer when he had his first possession just over one minute in. He set up two goals in the first quarter, kicked three in the second - and took a brave mark deep in the term against Steven Salopek - and ended with 11 touches and 3.2.
Turning point
Port Adelaide had all the ascendancy with four straight goals in the final quarter to peg the margin back to just 14 points after it had ballooned to 45 deep in the third quarter. Midfielder Hamish Hartlett had an age to gather the ball deep in defence. He looked to chip a 15-metre kick to a teammate, only to have it skew off the side of the boot and out-on-the-full. The resultant kick in to the forward line found Stefan Martin's chest and he converted truly to extinguish the Power's surge.
Next four
Melbourne: The Demons have a tough assignment against the rested Hawthorn at the MCG next Sunday, followed by a trip down the highway to face Geelong. They then play Carlton at the MCG before crossing the Nullarbor to take on West Coast at Patersons Stadium.
Dream team highlight
Melbourne: Ricky Petterd (304,900) was clearly the most influential player on the ground with 123 points.
QUARTER BY QUARTER
First Quarter
Melbourne forwards Ricky Petterd and Addam Maric kicked two goals each in the opening term and ran amok in the forward line. Melbourne's transition from defence to offence was a key feature of its game, aided by Port Adelaide's noticeable lack of pressure. Port Adelaide finally hit the scoreboard with seven minutes remaining through veteran Chad Cornes who took advantage of an open goal square to skid the ball home. Daniel Nicholson, in his sixth game for Melbourne, burnt off a would-be tackler to finish a terrific running goal to extend the margin to 24 points at quarter time.
Melbourne by 24 points.
Second Quarter
Liam Jurrah kicked three goals for the quarter, and provided a multitude of highlights, including a scintillating goal on the run and some high-flying acrobatics. Melbourne skipper Brad Green was left a little red-faced when he protested to the umpire about a runner who had crossed the mark. He proceeded to make the umpire aware of the situation, only to realise it was his own runner and was forced to give the ball up to the opposition. Danyle Pearce kicked Port's third goal, after James Strauss fumbled a crucial ground ball deep in defence. Port Adelaide improved their defensive pressure.
Melbourne by 20 points.
Third Quarter
In-form ruckman Stefan Martin nailed his first major, making Port Adelaide pay for back-to-back errant handballs in defence. Matt Thomas stifled a ball kicked by Strauss and in the one motion snatched it out of the air and drilled an excellent opportunist goal. From there, Melbourne booted five goals in a row through Gysberts, Maric, Sylvia (who slotted a booming goal from 50 metres out on the run) and Green who kicked a couple in a minute to take the margin to 45 points.
Melbourne by 39 points
Fourth Quarter
Cornes kicked his third early in the final term as he provided a real presence in the forward line. Cassisi pulled the margin back to 26 points to give the Power faint hope of a miraculous comeback. Hamish Hartlett kicked the cover off the ball to close the gap, and then, just seconds later, Banner kicked his third with another long-range goal to close the gap to 14 points. The margin was 45 points deep in to the third quarter, but all of a sudden the Power started to believe in divine intervention. Martin though had other ideas and made a sluggish Hartlett pay for a shocking skill error in defence which all but snuffed out any chance of a remarkable Port Adelaide revival.
Melbourne 6.2 9.6 16.8 17.11 (113)
Port Adelaide 2.2 6.4 10.5 14.8 (92)
GOALS
Melbourne: Jurrah 3, Maric 3, Petterd 3, Green 2, Martin 2, Gysberts, Jones, Nicholson, Sylvia
Port Adelaide: Banner 3, Cornes 3, Gray 2, Hitchcock 2, Cassisi, Hartlett, Pearce , Thomas
BEST
Melbourne: Petterd, Martin, Sylvia, Moloney, Frawley, Trengove, Maric, Jurrah
Port Adelaide: C. Cornes, Thomas, Banner, Cassisi, O'Shea, Pearce, K.Cornes, Hartlett, Jacobs
INJURIES
Melbourne: Scully (knee)
Port Adelaide: Thomas (eye)
SUBSTITUTES
Melbourne: Tom Scully (knee) replaced by Jeremy Howe in the fourth quarter
Port Adelaide: Brad Ebert replaced by David Rodan in the third quarter
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Dalgleish, Armstrong, Jeffery
Official crowd: 7, 255 at TIO Stadium Darwin
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL
