West Adelaide has moved into the top five of the SANFL standings after delivering a commanding 105-point victory over an undermanned Port Adelaide side in a rain-affected match at Richmond on Saturday. The win, combined with a result elsewhere involving Woodville-West Torrens, has placed West Adelaide in control of its finals destiny with two rounds remaining in the regular season.
Port Adelaide entered the contest depleted by injury and illness, fielding just six AFL-listed players. West Adelaide took advantage early, trailing by two goals after conceding the opening scoring, before responding with a streak of 16 unanswered goals. The Bloods dominated territory and possession from the outset, registering 20 inside-50 entries and 43 more disposals in the first quarter to hold a 35-point lead.
A lightning delay of approximately 30 minutes at quarter-time did not disrupt West’s momentum. The Bloods added five goals in the second term while keeping Port scoreless, extending their lead to 68 points by halftime. The dominant performance continued in the second half, with West Adelaide kicking seven goals to Port’s sole major, reaching the milestone 100-point margin courtesy of a goal by Dylan White after the final siren.
Chris Burgess was a standout in defence for West Adelaide, finishing with 27 disposals and eight marks. The young midfield group, including Ben Ridgway, Kobe Ryan, and Cade Kennedy, also impressed with their ability to find and distribute the ball. Coach Nathan Bassett highlighted the defensive stability brought by Burgess moving back into the defensive line over recent weeks.
"Our guys played the right way, they played tough from about six minutes in to the end of the game," Bassett said following the match. "We are playing some good footy and just continuing to build. With the Eagles winning today, if we win our next two games, we are guaranteed top five, which is exciting. We want to compete against the best sides and Glenelg next week is a great challenge."
On the Port Adelaide side, despite the heavy defeat, draft prospect Dougie Cochrane made a notable individual contribution with a team-high 31 disposals from a defensive position. Port coach Jacob Surjan acknowledged the challenge posed by West Adelaide and the adverse weather conditions that favoured their opponents’ contested style.
“West are the No.1 contested team in the competition for a reason, and when it got wet—and it got wet quick—it probably wasn’t going to suit the way we wanted to go about our footy,” Surjan said. “Credit to them, they were superb all day.”
West Adelaide is now on the verge of its first finals appearance since winning the premiership in 2015, with two regular-season matches remaining to secure a top-five berth.