PORT Adelaide has been proven to have a few extra gears on Richmond, kicking clear to secure a relatively comfortable 42-point victory at the MCG.
It was a dirty day for the undersized and effectively underage Tigers forward line, which didn't kick a goal until five minutes left in the second term, and managed just six majors in the 13.12 (90) to 6.12 (48) loss, with two coming in junk time in the final minutes of the game.
The last time these two sides met was just over a year ago, with the Power recording a thumping 72-point win.
Things have changed a lot for Port Adelaide in the space of 12 months, and new coach Josh Carr joined Adem Yze in naming six players each with fewer than 50 games experience.
It resulted in quite an uneven and oddly flat game, where veterans sprinkled around the field had periods of dominance, while the youngsters had moments of brilliance.
Aliir Aliir (18 intercept possessions) easily accounted for any high ball coming his way, particularly in the first half, with young key forwards Jonty Faull and Liam Fawcett unable to put on enough physical pressure to affect the aerial defender.
Jason Horne-Francis (18 touches, two goals) was a class above, finding plenty of the footy and being a key conduit inside 50 in the first half, while Kane Farrell (24) was working hard up and back, and Mitch Georgiades was threatening to kick a bag with four shots in the opening forty minutes.
Sam Grlj was thrown onto the ball halfway through the second term in an attempt to bring some pace and life to the Tigers' ball movement, but it was an awfully tough ask for a fourth-gamer to reverse Richmond's fortunes.
Maurice Rioli's impressive goal-square speccy kickstarted a mini Richmond resurgence, with Fawcett kicking two goals in three minutes to pull the margin back to 15 at the main break, the 20-year-old showing some promising signs in his second match (both coming against Port Adelaide, oddly enough).
Acting Port skipper Zak Butters (30 touches, six clearances) was relatively quiet in the first half by his lofty standards with 10 disposals, but kick-started the third term with zeal, as his side addressed its earlier clearance woes and gradually coasted away to a 36-point lead after Jordon Sweet's snap from a forward stoppage.
The Tigers pushed again, but just couldn't convert on the scoreboard, summed up by Steely Green dodging and weaving around a few defenders, before his shot left Faull with the imprint of a Sherrin on his hamstring.
Horne-Francis put any thoughts of a Richmond comeback to bed with a goal early in the last quarter, and the bottom fell out of the game, the Power piling on five goals to wrap up the win.
Kane Farrell's left ankle sent a scare through the Port Adelaide camp just before half-time, but the hard runner played out the game after the tweak.
RICHMOND 0.1 3.4 4.8 6.12 (48)
PORT ADELAIDE 1.6 5.7 8.11 13.12 (90)
GOALS
Richmond: Fawcett 2, Lalor 2, Rioli, Banks
Port Adelaide: Georgiades 2, Whitlock 2, Horne-Francis 2, Lukosius 2, Wehr, Richards, Durdin, Sweet, Drew
BEST
Richmond: Taranto, Prestia, Miller, Rioli, Hopper
Port Adelaide: Butters, Horne-Francis, Aliir, Farrell, Burgoyne, Georgiades
INJURIES
Richmond: Nil
Port Adelaide: Nil
Crowd: 34,471 at the MCG
