Match

North Melbourne vs Port Adelaide

Commentary / 17 Aug 2019

Pre Game

00:00
Since Round 17, Robbie Tarrant leads all players in the AFL with 31 effective marking contest spoils. For the Power, Justin Westhoff is the most efficient player in this regard, recording 24 effective spoils from just 31 attempts.

Quarter 1

00:00
Q1 is now underway.
01:30
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Nick Larkey)
02:29
Nick Larkey gets the first goal of the match after winning the first free kick of the match. That is North Melbourne's 39th goal this season that has been scored from a free kick, which draws them level with Port Adelaide who led this category across all teams in the AFL at the start of Round 22.
05:50
North Melbourne have won the first five inside 50's of tonight's match. Port Adelaide have won the inside 50 count by an average of 10 per game in 2019, the highest differential measure in this category of any side in the competition.
07:49
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Trent Dumont)
09:00
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
10:23
Port Adelaide just haven't been able to make any meaningful attack into the forward half of the ground, largely as a result of the Kangaroos winning every centre clearance of the match so far.
10:56
SCORE BEHIND - Power (Karl Amon)
13:36
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Nick Larkey)
13:44
It's taken the Kangaroos just half a quarter to eclipse the score they recorded last week against Geelong, the lowest in the club's history. Six Kangaroos players have recorded at least three handball-receives each, whereas the Power have 13 handball-receives in total for the match.
15:12
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Rushed)
16:44
Justin Westhoff has been one of a few players for the Power who have shown some intent in the first quarter, leading all players on the ground with four groundball-gets in the first term, and five intercept possessions, four of which have been recorded in his defensive 50 zone.
17:37
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Nathan Hrovat)
21:45
SCORE GOAL - Power (Karl Amon)
22:45
Karl Amon breaks the run of Kangaroos goals to get the Power on the board. Amon's been one of the Power's most improved players this season, and sits fifth at the Power for Total Scoreboard Impact since Round 7, accounting for 115 points scored in that time.
22:59
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Cameron Zurhaar)
24:52
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Nick Larkey)
26:52
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
27:30
That goal to Ben Brown was launched from the Kangaroos fifth possession chain to originate from defensive 50 in tonight's match. By comparison, the Power have launched 14 possession chains from their respective defensive 50 zone for just one behind.
28:27
Power Interchange - Sam Powell-Pepper off due to an injury.
29:56
A brilliant first quarter from the Kangaroos sees them out to a 32 point lead. They have averaged a score of 22 points per game in first quarter, the fifth-highest average of any side in this category in 2019, with only the current top four teams on the season ladder ahead of them in this measure.

Quarter 2

00:00
Q2 is now underway.
00:22
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
03:21
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Todd Goldstein)
04:12
Todd Goldstein is tearing the Power apart in the first half of this match. He has recorded eight clearances so far tonight, two more than the entire Power team combined, and has launched three of the Kangaroos five goals from this source.
06:04
SCORE GOAL - Power (Robbie Gray)
06:39
A free kick to Robbie Gray allows him to get the Power's second goal of the game. He has been held to just two disposals by Scott Thompson so far in tonight's match.
09:22
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Jared Polec)
10:25
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Jack Ziebell)
12:40
In the first quarter, it was North Melbourne dominating the stoppages recording 15 pre-clearance contested possessions to the Power's five. This quarter it's been the play outside the stoppages where the Kangaroos 20 post-clearance groundball-gets to 11 for Port Adelaide is providing them with a strong platform this quarter.
13:19
SCORE GOAL - Power (Robbie Gray)
14:28
SCORE BEHIND - Power (Robbie Gray)
16:51
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
17:57
SCORE BEHIND - Power (Sam Gray)
20:56
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Cameron Zurhaar)
22:49
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Nick Larkey)
23:15
North Melbourne have played on immediately from 46 per cent of their marks in tonight's match so far. Since Round 17 they have played on from just 17 per cent of marks taken, the second-lowest mark-play on rate of any side in the AFL in this time.
24:58
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
26:33
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Jack Ziebell)
28:07
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
28:15
Ben Brown has now kicked six goals in the first half of tonight's match, the first time he has recorded this feat in his career. He is now level on the Coleman Medal count with Jeremy Cameron on 58 goals kicked in 2019.
30:03
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Taylor Garner)
30:33
Travis Boak has been the best of the Power players in the first half of tonight's match, leading all Power players with 14 disposals, eight contested possessions, five clearances as well as recording three score involvements including one score assist.
31:06
SCORE BEHIND - Power (Robbie Gray)
32:05
North Melbourne leads the disposal count by 119, the contested possession count by 32 and the uncontested possession count by 96 at half time. These are all the highest differential measures recorded in each of these categories from any game in the 2019 AFL season.

Quarter 3

00:00
Q3 is now underway.
00:58
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Tarryn Thomas)
04:13
Jy Simpkin has been heavily involved early in the third quarter, with 125 metres gained from six disposals resulting in two clearances and all three of the Kangaroos inside 50's in this term.
05:00
SCORE GOAL - Power (Paddy Ryder)
06:29
That goal to Paddy Ryder is the Power's first to be launched from a clearance in tonight's match. Port Adelaide average 32 points per game from this source in 2019, the seventh-highest average of any side in the AFL in this category.
07:53
SCORE BEHIND - Power (Dan Houston)
11:14
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
11:34
Port Adelaide are winning the contested possession count for the first time in any quarter of tonight's match (17-15) and have not turned the ball over from six kicks inside 50 in the third quarter.
12:45
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Nick Larkey)
14:25
Charlie Dixon kicks the Power's third goal from a set shot in tonight's match. By comparison, the Kangaroos have kicked 10 goals for the match from this shot type, and are the number one ranked side in the AFL in this category to the end of Round 21 (151 goals in 2019 from set shots).
18:04
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
18:10
Ben Brown has set a new career-high with eight goals in tonight's match, and is the first player to achieve this feat in 2019.
19:54
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
22:48
Paddy Ryder has lifted in this quarter for the Power, winning six hitouts from his eight ruck contests, including three hitouts-to-advantage. However the Kangaroos are getting the upper hand in this quarter by leading the centre clearance count 5-1.
24:20
SCORE GOAL - Power (Karl Amon)
26:57
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Jared Polec)
27:12
Kangaroos Interchange - Jed Anderson and is possibly out for the game.
28:12
The third term will make three straight quarters for the Power with a disposal retention rate below 50 per cent. By comparison, the Kangaroos have not dipped below 54 per cent in this category across the first three terms of tonight's match.
28:53
SCORE GOAL - Power (Connor Rozee)
30:46
A big quarter from Trent Dumont in the third quarter. He led all players on the ground with 12 disposals, six contested possessions, six tackles, three clearances and three score involvements including a goal assist.

Quarter 4

00:00
Q4 is now underway.
02:03
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Taylor Garner)
04:16
SCORE BEHIND - Power (Dan Houston)
05:29
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
05:40
Ben Brown becomes the first player since Jack Riewoldt in Round 21, 2018 to kick 10 goals in a match, and the first Kangaroos player since Wayne Carey against Essendon in Round 17, 1999 to accomplish this feat.
07:22
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Jack Ziebell)
09:46
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Shaun Higgins)
10:19
A huge disparity in effort and run in the first half of the final term, with the Kangaroos not only winning the contested ball in the final quarter (17-8, including 14-3 groundball-gets), but they're moving the ball freely into their forward 50, with 28 handball receives to just four for the Power and eight of their 10 possession chains in the final term ending inside forward 50.
11:22
SCORE GOAL - Kangaroos (Jy Simpkin)
13:40
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Ben Brown)
14:53
SCORE GOAL - Power (Robbie Gray)
17:18
SCORE BEHIND - Power (Rushed)
17:46
North Melbourne have just missed just two tackles in tonight's match. By comparison, Port Adelaide are one missed tackle shy of matching the season record of 18 missed tackles in a match, which they set against Geelong in Round 14.
20:32
SCORE BEHIND - Power (Paddy Ryder)
23:03
Paddy Ryder can hold his head up for competing against one of the form ruckman in the AFL, as he has broken even in hitouts with Todd Goldstein (26-26), and leads him in hitouts-to-advantage (10-8).
27:05
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Shaun Atley)
28:07
Travis Boak has earned his team-high 19 contested possessions off the back of 12 groundball-gets and eight clearances, and Justin Westhoff has also featured among the Power's best with 10 contested possessions and 11 intercept possessions.
28:44
SCORE BEHIND - Kangaroos (Rushed)
29:34
North Melbourne have recorded the sixth-highest disposal differential measure (514-307) and the ninth-highest uncontested possession differential measure (341-176) in VFL/AFL history in tonight's match.