Australian Football

Match Report

In the final match of the round, the ABC TV trucks headed down Port Road again, but this time were off to Alberton Oval for the stoush between the Magpies and the Bulldogs. The 'Pies have been unable to take a trick against the reigning premiers, the previous 10 matches all Dogs victories. The closest Port have got was a seven-point loss on a sodden Elizabeth pitch.

The Magpies were a persisten mob early on, keeping in step with the Dogs despite being down at quarter-time after kicking 3.2 to 3.4. Centrals stepped it up a little in the second term, despite having no dominant forwards on the park they would kick 3.1 to Port's 2.2 to lead by seven points at the half-time break. The Dogs would be forced to use make-shift forwards from here onwards, but it was those outside the forward line helping to make an impact on the scoreboard. Centrals would start to assert control of the game here, kicking 4.4 to three goals in the third quarter to extend their advantage to 17 points going into the final term. The Bulldogs would hammer the nail in to close the match, kicking 6.2 to 2.2 in the final quarter to re-take top spot with a 41-point win.

Chad O'Sullivan was all over the place, he kicked five goals in his best on ground performance for Centrals, while the Magpies named Steven Summerton as their best afield.