We take a look at some of the important lessons from Saturday's agonising three-point loss to Adelaide in Showdown XLV.

You can’t pick a Showdown. Going into the game the ledger was even with Port Adelaide and Adelaide each holding 22 wins. Showdown XLV was another thriller with big momentum swings. The Crows came out firing with the first three goals of the game. The Power then dominated for periods, continually answering Adelaide’s questions. While the Power held a lead late in the contest, a 50-metre penalty, some Eddie Betts brilliance and a controversial snapped goal to Josh Jenkins were enough to give the Crows the win.

Port’s new faces have shown glimpses of being long-term players. In their first Showdowns, Kane Farrell and Jarrod Lienert held their own and even displayed moments of brilliance. 19-year-old Farrell, in particular, turned the first quarter on its head with three goals. The second-gamer twice linked with Jack Watts at speed to snap goals, and his left foot was important in another goal over the back to captain Travis Boak. Third-gamer Jarrod Lienert continued to look composed in defence and had 18 disposals, an equal team-high eight marks and two clearances.

Robbie Gray is the Showdown King. Gray collected his fourth Showdown medal on Saturday evening, one more than the next best Mark Ricciuto, Josh Francou and Sam Jacobs. It was also Gray’s second Showdown medal in a row. Gray collected 20 disposals – 12 of them contested – to go with five marks, seven clearances, three inside 50s and an equal game-high four goals.

Port Adelaide plays team defence. Not only has the Power got the second-best defence in the competition – conceding just 11 points more than leader Richmond – the team from Alberton is also the best tackling team in the league. It has had 1360 tackles at an average of 71.6 per game, and it also leads the league for one-percenters with 1165 – 114 more than the next best Hawthorn.

The competition is tight and slip-ups are punished. Pushing for a spot in the top-four on the ladder going into the game, the three-point loss has seen the Power drop to seventh after wins from Hawthorn, Greater Western Sydney, and Melbourne. With three games to go before finals, just two wins separate fourth from 12th, setting up an enticing end to the regular season.

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