‘Magical’ Jason Horne-Francis blows AFL world away

The Power made it 10 straight wins after taking care of business on Friday night against the Western Bulldogs under the roof at Marvel Stadium.

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In a contest that was a genuine arm wrestle in the opening half, Port Adelaide flicked the switch in the second half and solidified their spot in the top two on the ladder.

The Bulldogs fought back in the fourth quarter and looked to have the momentum, that was until maligned young star Jason Horne-Francis entered the equation.

Arguably the most targeted player in the league this season, the youngster again heard boos in the opening portion of the contest.

But one moment of pure brilliance with the game on the line left the footy world in utter disbelief.

A long kick inside Port Adelaide’s 50 resulted in the ball hitting the deck in open space. Horne-Francis turned on the jets as he burned two opponents to get to the footy first.

At full speed, and as cool as the flip side of the pillow, he leant down with his right hand and scooped the ball up before turning on a dime back towards goal.

As he straightened up he calmly slotted the ball over the goal umpires head and extended the lead out to 14 points.

The moment sent the AFL world into meltdown with many praising the young star for producing a moment of magic with the game up for grabs.

Triple M’s Rudi Edsall wrote: “That is INCREDIBLE by Horne-Francis!!”

The Herald Sun’s Jon Ralph wrote: “The pick up. The u turn. The finish. Magical.”

Fox Sports’ Ben Waterworth wrote: “My word what a play. The Butters composure, acceleration and shrewd handball … the Horne-Francis gather at full speed then composure to kick the clutch goal. As good as it gets.”

The Age’s Andrew Wu wrote: “Jason Horne-Francis. My goodness.”

The club’s unprecedented run of victories started after club legend Warren Tredrea described Hinkley’s tenure as “untenable”, unwittingly sparking a “reverse curse” for the team he captained to their sole AFL premiership in 2004.

The 16.11 (107) to 13.7 (85) result continued a worrying slump for the Bulldogs who are at risk of slipping out of the top eight this weekend after starting the year with a sparkling 7-3 record.

Star midfielder Zak Butters continued his stellar season as he lead the way for his team with 31 disposals (12 contested), six clearances, five tackles and a goal.

Charlie Dixon returned to the team with a phenomenal display as he kicked a game-high four goals.

The Power can make it 11 straight wins next Thursday when they take on Geelong back at Adelaide Oval.

Champion midfielder Marcus Bontempelli’s Brownlow hopes could be hanging in the balance as his Western Bulldogs slumped to their third loss in a row on Friday night against Port Adelaide at Marvel Stadium.

Bontempelli collided with the Power’s Dan Houston in the second quarter as the pair contested a loose ball, and in doing so made heavy contact with Houston’s shoulder/head region, dazing the Port defender for a few seconds.

Houston dusted himself off and resumed playing, but given the current climate surrounding head knocks in the AFL, especially hot on the heels of St Kilda forward Dan Butler’s one-week suspension for his tackle on Sydney’s Nick Blakey on Thursday night, Bontempelli could be staring down the barrel of a suspension.

– with Ronny Lerner, NCA Newswire