Live: Bulldogs take advantage of strong breeze to build solid lead over Power

• Bailey Dale (WB) – 18
• Zak Butters (Pt Ad) – 15
• Connor Rozee (Pt Ad) – 14
• Jason Horne-Francis (Pt Ad) – 12
• Matthew Kennedy (WB) – 12
• Ed Richards (WB) – 11

Others on 11: Jase Burgoyne, Ollie Wines, WIll Lorenz (Pt Ad); Tom Liberatore (WB)

A late goal on the break from Aaron Naughton just rubs salt in for the Power after their missed shots.

They have time for one last foray, and it goes to Mitch Georgiades again – but he pushed it out to the left! Wasteful.

The siren goes and the lead is beyond four goals, it looks like a tough ask for the visitors if they are to try to turn this round.

The Power are trying hard, but the Dogs showed them how to use the wind in that second term, booting six goals. Stick with us to see if Port Adelaide can find an answer.

Port Adelaide are looking stronger here, but they have to take their chances.

They get it to Mitch Georgiades in the right forward pocket. He kicks, but it drifts wide to the left for a point.

And then Jason Horne-Francis marks in the opposite pocket – but his difficult task proves too much and it goes wide as well.

Very much against the run of play, the Power manage to lock the ball in forward 50 for a minute or so. Multiple stoppages ensue, and then the umpires find a free for an arm over the shoulder from Tim English.

Jordon Sweet steps up – and that is a VITAL goal!

The lead is back to 23 points, but there has to be more before half-time.

And here we go again!

The Bulldogs move it inside 50, they force a stoppage and the ball is fed out – this time it comes to Luke Cleary, and the young defender snaps one for his first goal in AFL footy! That’s their seventh of the day, and the lead is out to 29 points.

Major alarm bells ringing for the Power.

This is a difficult contest for the visitors, and there really aren’t too many positives to look to here.

The one standout is Zak Butters, who is playing a lone hand with 13 disposals and seven tackles so far.

With half the second term remaining, the Bulldogs have had 24 inside 50s to Port Adelaide’s 16.

If this term keeps going the way it is, the home side could be all but out of sight by half-time!

THIS is how you use a strong breeze!

The Bulldogs are going forward almost at will, and the handball over the top finds Aaron Naughton, who waltzes in to kick the fifth goal in a row for the home side.

This is rinse-and-repeat stuff now for the Power defence.

The Bulldogs are getting the ball forward, and the Port Adelaide defenders are being penalised repeatedly.

First Ryley Sanders converts a set shot from 40, then a long ball from Adam Treloar hits the post but is overruled for a downfield free.

Aaron Naughton has it – but he misses!

Still, the Bulldogs lead by 17 points and the Power MUST respond here.

Port Adelaide’s defence is really struggling to cope with the aerial attack from the Bulldogs.

The ball goes in, and another free is given away for holding.

Buku Khamis gets the kick, and he drills it!

Suddenly the home side leads by 10 points!

The Bulldogs are much more in control going forward, they are peppering forward 50 and Marcus Bontempelli earns a free for a hold.

His kick from right of the goals is on target … until the wind yanks it to the right. Tough miss that.

It looks like a mirror image of the first quarter, with the Bulldogs rushing the ball inside forward 50 and locking it in with the strong wind.

They go in again, forcing a stoppage, Tim English taps down to Ed Richards, who bursts onto it and kicks a left-foot banana from the pocket and it goes through!

What a kick! What a goal!

Bulldogs in front.

• Disposals: Bulldogs 104-92

• Inside 50s: Port Adelaide 15-14

• Hit outs: Port Adelaide 17-7

• Clearances: Port Adelaide 12-5

• Centre clearances: Port Adelaide 3-1

• Contested Possessions: Port Adelaide 48-39

• Uncontested Possessions: Bulldogs 65-47

• Marks Inside 50: Bulldogs 2-1

• Tackles: Port Adelaide 19-15

The siren goes in Ballarat, and that sound you hear will be a scream from Power coach Ken Hinkley, frustrated that his team has wasted such a strong wind.

The visitors have maybe over-reacted and tried to play too fast with the breeze. But aside from Willie Rioli, they haven’t had a focal point up forward.

If the Bulldogs can use it properly next quarter, they could blow this game open. And the fact that Marcus Bontempelli has only touched it twice so far is a very good sign – what will they do if he does start really getting the pill?

The capacity of Eureka Stadium is well down thanks to construction of what would have been the Commonwealth Games main stadium.

Opposition fans are, as always totally outnumbered by Bulldogs supporters, but there is one pocket at the Port Adelaide defensive end in the first quarter, where there look to be 60 or more Power fans, huddling together for warmth (just kidding!)

It’s not a shootout exactly, but that’s three goals in pretty quick time!

The Dogs went forward and then took toll from a stoppage. The ball fell to Rhylee West in the right forward pocket, and he produced a beautiful snap that leads to a big roar from the crowd!

There’s the reply!

Straight from the centre bounce, the Power funnel it forward through Zak Butters – who is having a strong start here – and he finds Willie Rioli.

Rioli lines up and kicks it perfectly through from 40-45!

The lead is back to 10 points.

That was better from the Bulldogs!

They chipped it forward, and found Aaron Naughton in the left forward pocket.

He kicked the ball for goal from the boundary, it faded right and looked like a point, was caught by Buku Khamis near (over) the line.

Initially called no score, it is found to be a mark.

And Khamis kicks it! That’s a precious goal against the wind!

It’s 1.4 (10) to 1.0 (6), with nine minutes left in the quarter.

It’s been a struggle so far for the Bulldogs, but given the strength of the wind, they’d probably take conceding just one goal for nearly half a quarter.