1. McVeigh still the man
Jarrad McVeigh returned to the Swans line-up and dominated from the outset. He was cool through the midfield and out of defence with 11 possessions and two inside 50s in the first quarter. It really set the tone with the ball use from the Swans outperforming Port Adelaide all game. It was such a stark contrast from the Swans’ snail start against Essendon last week and once they hit the front they never looked back. McVeigh finished with 26 touches as the Swans sent a strong message to the rest of the competition.
2. Kennedy, the contested king
Josh Kennedy is the undisputed contested king and he continued his reign at Adelaide Oval. Coming off 25 contested possessions last week he followed it up with 18 on Saturday night. He had plenty of support from Kieren Jack (18) and Luke Parker (16). Overall the Swans won the count by 11 and also swept the other key performance indicators of tackles (77 to 51) and won the clearances by nine. These stats are the bread and butter for the Swans and when they win them they rarely lose.
3. Port's disposal efficiency
The Power’s skills were off from the first bounce. They controlled the play but made crucial turnovers which meant they couldn't make an impact on the scoreboard. It set the scene for the rest of the night with the Power struggling to find the missing link when they went inside the forward 50. They ended up winning the entries 62 to 53 but only had 14 scoring shots which would have frustrated coach Ken Hinkley. While turnovers were about even it was the Swans’ ability to punish Port that was the major difference.
4. Paddy power
Paddy Ryder was recruited as a major piece in the Power’s push for a premiership and on Saturday night we saw the best glimpse of how Hinkley will use him throughout the season. Last week he played as the lone ruckman but this week he had the support of Jarrad Redden, who played his first AFL game in 679 days after a horror run of injuries. He was understandably a bit rusty in his first match but Ryder provided a good chop-out with 17 hit-outs and proved the Power's best option up forward with two goals. Lead ruckman Matthew Lobbe remains out with a thigh strain and is still in doubt for their next match against North Melbourne.
5. They will never, ever, tear up our start
About the only win for the Power on Saturday night was their pre-game entertainment. In a major coup for the club they had Tim and Jon Fariss from INXS help kick off the playing of Port's adopted theme song 'Never Tear Us Apart'. The atmosphere was electric when it was coupled with fireworks. The crowd and the players themselves were pumped for the first bounce. Port remain the best in the business with their off the field entertainment, but sitting at 0-2 it's not time panic stations yet, but a win in their next two rounds against North Melbourne or Hawthorn is an absolute must.
