Port Adelaide great Kane Cornes has slammed the Power’s efforts in the last quarter of their 21-point loss against Fremantle on Saturday.
It was a close contest for three quarters at Optus Stadium, with the Power leading by just one point at three-quarter time.
However they were kept scoreless in the final term, which Cornes says is unacceptable.
“The Port Adelaide players, both ruckmen, the midfielders and the leaders went missing for a team that had been so impressive for three quarters,” he said on SEN SA Breakfast.
“That last quarter performance was nothing short of embarrassing.
“There was a gold clad opportunity for the Power to set their season up at three-quarter time in Perth on Saturday.
“Instead, the team, led by its star ruck duo and leaders, shrivelled up and disintegrated.”
Cornes believes Port Adelaide missed a golden opportunity to consolidate its spot in the top eight.
“Leading into that Round 13 clash, despite a challenging year due to significant injuries and a recently demanding travel schedule, (the Power) were in a great position, sitting in seventh spot on the AFL ladder,” he said.
“They were taking on a team who were equally hit by injuries to key players, Rory Lobb and Alex Pearce.
“Despite Ken Hinkley playing it down during the week, it was every bit an eight-point game and a chance to separate yourselves from the average teams and solidify a spot on the top eight with a favourable run home and some big names returning from injury in the coming weeks.
“For three quarters, the game lived up to that hype… it was perhaps the most even game we had seen in 2019.”
The Power will aim to bounce back from the disappointing loss to the Dockers when they head back to Adelaide Oval to host ladder leader Geelong on Saturday night.