Port beats Collingwood by 25 points
Port Adelaide dynamo Gavin Wanganeen continued his stellar AFL season on Friday night by inspiring his side to a 25-point triumph against Collingwood at AAMI Stadium.
Wanganeen kicked three goals and saved others for his side to spark Port's convincing 14.14 (98) to 10.13 (73) victory.
Both club's spent the week aiming verbal barbs at each other, prompting fears of crowd violence as extra security were placed around the visiting Collingwood side.
Two burly security guards spent the entire match facing the crowd from behind the Magpies' dugout and at half-time an unprecedented 12 security staff and four police officers escorted the visitors to their rooms.
Collingwood president Eddie McGuire also had personal security boosted for the match, but there were no reports of trouble as the predominantly Port crowd of 43,321 people appeared more intent on cheering their side to a seventh win from 10 outings this season.
The contest was effectively decided in the third quarter when Port unleashed a devastating seven-goal burst to set it on course for victory.
Wanganeen was a prominent force in that decisive quarter but teammate Byron Pickett threatened to steal the show by booting three goals for the term as the hosts turned a five-point half-time deficit into a match-winning 26-point advantage at three-quarter time.
Wanganeen started the match at full-forward, had stints on the ball and also bobbed up time and again in Port's backline in a display reminiscent of his 1993 brilliance, when he won the Brownlow medal.
With a conservative four best on ground performances already this season, Wanganeen is in such superb form he could win another medal some 10 years later.
Wanganeen's three majors for Port were supported by Pickett's haul and a livewire display from Che Cockatoo-Collins, who also kicked three goals in his 150th AFL match before leaving the ground injured during his side's barnstorming third quarter.
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