World News – AU – Tigers to Grand Final after winning thriller

Click here for blow-by-blow coverage of tonight’s preliminary final match between Port Adelaide and Richmond

Richmond will look to win his third PM in four seasons after a thrilling six-point win over Port Adelaide in a thrilling preliminary final clash

With a two-point lead heading into the final quarter, a pair of goals from Kane Lambert was enough for the Tigers to win a 6 ten (46) to 6 4 (40) victory at the Adelaide Oval

In a competition where the margin was never more than two goals in either case, the Tigers’ experience proved to be the difference in the second half

It was a bitter end to a formidable 150th season in club history for Port Adelaide, which was spurred on by a boisterous crowd but ultimately failed two wins before a prime ministerial post

Richmond’s victory was made even sweeter by captain Trent Cotchin’s 250th career game, and the skipper praised the Tigers’ defeated opponents

« We knew we had to come here and try to take something away from them. I thought it was an exceptional game, » he said

« We don’t let any thinking get in our way so let the process tempt you and we knew they would keep coming, it’s a fantastic team The beauty of having been there before is you know exactly what is needed

« Port will be kicking each other away from here, but they should be really proud of how they attacked the year It’s been a really tough year for all the teams »

After being a poor punters throughout the season, the Tigers kicked off their victory with a remarkable recovery in pitches

Power won the game tally 20-13 in the first half, before the Tigers surrendered 28-9 in the second half, allowing them to trap the ball in their front 50

In one of the most heroic acts of the season, Port Adelaide veteran Brad Ebert suffered a concussion in the last quarter after a booty attempt on Jack Riewoldt

The 32-year-old is yet to be offered a new deal amid concerns for his long-term health following a number of concussion issues this season

Richmond will now face the winner of Saturday’s preliminary final clash between the Brisbane Lions and Geelong in an attempt to seal his place as one of the great modern-day AFL dynasties

Brad Ebert was forced off the field with what appears to be a concussion with five minutes remaining

His head hit the grass after a brave attempt to booty deep from the Tigers forward 50 as he came back with the flight of the ball to spoil Jack Riewoldt

The referees were very hot on the deliberate offside rule tonight and they paid one against Hamish Hartlett deep in the front pocket for Richmond

Kane Lambert scores his second goal of the quarter and it’s danger time for Power with 10 minutes to go

Another quarter of time and it’s the Tigers who take a two-point lead in the final stanza after another thrilling quarter-footy

It’s been a real showdown all night Just as one team seems to want to open the match, the other comes back roaring

Richmond looked ready to blow him up after Lynch’s goal in the third, but Scott Lycett was able to strike back so the Power did keep them within striking range.

If you want to know how tight this one has been, the two-point margin at 3QT is the closest to that margin in a preliminary final since the Bulldogs-Giants thriller in 2016

Of course, the Bulldogs shocked the Giants that night to advance to the Grand Final

Brilliant field mark from Tom Lynch and he managed to advance the Tigres by seven to two minutes in the third quarter

« It’s been a real showdown, » BT says as we head to the main break and I totally agree

What an absolutely thrilling competition, and the two teams probably deserve to be linked to each other

Richmond looked to run away with the game in the opening 15 minutes of the game with the first two goals before Port Adelaide hit back with the next three

Power seemed to bother the Tigers at ground level with their speed around the ground, but Richmond did a better job not allowing the ball to come out at the back of competitions as consistently as in the first quarter.

The two big men, Tom Lynch and Charlie Dixon, are yet to shoot on goal and Richmond youngster Noah Balta did a sensational job on the big Charlie, leaving the Port All-Australian frustrated

Fantastic response from Port Adelaide after Richmond scored the first two goals of this game as they took a two-point lead in the first chance

Damien Hardwick couldn’t have asked for a better start as Dustin Martin and Jack Riewoldt stepped onto the set, but Port’s leg speed seems to bother the Tigers

Their young arms were formidable, Xavier Duursma leading the way with seven assignments and a goal to accompany him

The Port Adelaide camp talked a bit about Tigers big man Tom Lynch over the course of the week and it was interesting that Duursma ran straight to Lynch to rub himself in after putting the power ahead

However, there is concern for Power after young striker Peter Ladhams was reported for what appeared to be a low blow to Noah Balta

It will be interesting to see where the MRO determines that Ladhams contacted Balta

Luke Hodge, on Seven’s comment, seems to think he hit the young Tiger below the belt and you should think that would get Ladhams into a bit of conflict

It was a frantic and sloppy start in wet conditions, with both teams failing to score a goal within the first 10 minutes

However, it was Dustin Martin, the last Richmond specialist who created something from scratch to throw the game’s opening goal

It was a high ball inside 50 from Dylan Grimes to a big pack and Martin rolls it to perfection to throw a magnificent goal in the wet

Ken Hinkley has of course spoken about his reluctance to score the Tigers superstar in the pre-game and you wonder if that tactic holds up throughout the game.

Tom Clurey went to see Tom Lynch in the first half, while Trent McKenzie took on Jack Riewoldt

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