Showdown (AFL)

Showdown

Players competing in a marking contest during Showdown 53 at Adelaide Oval.
Location	Adelaide, South Australia
Teams	Adelaide Port Adelaide
First meeting	20 April 1997 (Adelaide 72–83 Port Adelaide)
Latest meeting	2 May 2024 (Adelaide 78–48 Port Adelaide)
Next meeting	AFL: 17 August 2024
Stadiums	Football Park (1997–2013) Adelaide Oval (2014–present)
Trophy	Variety Showdown Shield
Statistics
All-time series	Total (55 meetings): Adelaide (28 wins) Port Adelaide (27 wins)
Largest victory	Adelaide (84 points) 6 August 2017
Longest win streak	Port Adelaide (7 wins) 6 August 2000 - 8 May 2004
Current win streak	Adelaide (3 wins) 1 April 2023 - present

The Showdown is the Australian rules football derby played by the two Australian Football League (AFL) teams from South Australia, the Adelaide and Port Adelaide football clubs. The first AFL premiership fixture between the two clubs took place on 20 April 1997.

The South Australian Brewing Company, makers of West End beers, were the first sponsors of the game and decided that the "Showdown" would be an appropriate name as a promotional opportunity for games between these two clubs, since it was the first time two South Australian teams had played against each other in the AFL.

The rivalry between Adelaide and Port Adelaide is often considered the best, and most bitter, in the Australian Football League with Malcolm Blight, Australian Football Hall of Fame Legend, stating in 2009 that "there is no doubt it is the greatest rivalry in football." The head-to-head count between the two clubs only include AFL premiership matches.

"There is a deep presumption today that your football loyalties come from a historical association with Port Adelaide or from one of the other nine SANFL clubs...That rivalry from the SANFL – by being Port Adelaide or not Port Adelaide – is...entrenched with the State's two clubs in the AFL.”

— John Olsen, former Premier of South Australia and current Chairman of the Adelaide Football Club.

Background

See also: Norwood–Port Adelaide rivalry, Port Adelaide v South Australia (1914), and 1990 SANFL Grand Final

The Showdown's intense rivalry can be traced back to Port Adelaide's pre-existing rivalries within the SANFL, particularly Norwood.

A SPLENDID GAME

Just as the more faithful
amongst the tribes of the East
feel it incumbent on them
to pay a periodical visit to Mecca,
so do lovers of the king of winter games
feel it almost an essential duty on their part
to journey to the Adelaide Oval
on the Queen's Accession Day,
in sunshine or rain,
to witness a trial of strength
between those great and old rivals
the Port Adelaide and Norwood clubs.

THE ADVERTISER, ADELAIDE, JUNE 21, 1893.

The Showdown is often considered the cultural successor to the Norwood–Port Adelaide rivalry characterised by a geographic and socio-economic divide. The two clubs first played each other in 1878 and became bitter rivals after multiple controversies in 1882. Pictured is the 1921 SANFL Grand Final taking place on Adelaide Oval.

The Norwood–Port Adelaide rivalry began in 1878 when the two clubs first played one another, however it was not until 1882 that the Norwood–Port Adelaide rivalry grew bitter. That year Port Adelaide's first win over Norwood, held at Adelaide Oval, was controversially overruled by the league, with a follow-up game overshadowed by a misunderstanding at the gate which almost prevented Norwood players accessing the venue.

"The feeling of rivalry between the two clubs is very keen, and it has unfortunately, it is to be feared, been intensified to the very verge of actual ill-feeling by the extraordinary conduct of the Norwood Club with reference to their last defeat by the Ports."

— Spectator writing for the Port Adelaide News, 18 July 1882

After Federation the football scene in South Australia was characterised by a 'Port Adelaide vs The Rest' narrative. Pictured is a cartoon from 1928.

After Federation, coinciding with the time that Port Adelaide was becoming the dominant force in the SANFL, the notion of 'Port Adelaide against The Rest' became a key theme for football in the state. This notion was reinforced by a game between Port Adelaide and a composite state side at the end of 1914 after Port Adelaide had completed a perfect season winning both the state premiership and the Champions of Australia for the fourth time.

Port Adelaide v South Australia (1914)	G	B	Total
South Australia	5	10	40
Port Adelaide	14	14	98
Venue: Jubilee Oval

In the match between Port Adelaide and the composite state side some of South Australia's best players took part including Magarey Medallists Tom Leahy (North Adelaide), Frank Barry (South Adelaide) and Dave Low (West Torrens). Whilst South Australia started the game well and entered the quarter time break with the lead, Port Adelaide's system and fitness overwhelmed South Australia kicking 6 goals 5 behinds to nothing in the last quarter to win the game by 58 points.

During the 1960s, West Adelaide legend Doug Thomas was quoted as saying that "If I was left to choose sides between Port Adelaide or the Soviet Union, I would join the communists from Russia every time."

The Showdown rivalry also significantly draws upon the bitter, winner take all, competition for the two South Australian licences to join the AFL in the 1980s and early 1990s.

First South Australian AFL licence

In 1982 the SANFL approached the VFL in regards to entering two sides, Port Adelaide and longtime major rival Norwood, in the Victorian league. This action was also taken by WAFL club East Perth in 1980. All approaches were ignored by the VFL at the time with the reason given by Jack Hamilton being that the VFL clubs thought that one or two SANFL teams would end up being too strong later admitting that they also wanted to continue to poach the states best players, which would soon include Craig Bradley and Stephen Kernahan in 1986. 1982 also saw the first instance of the VFL expanding beyond Melbourne and Geelong with the South Melbourne Football Club being relocated to Sydney. The Port Adelaide Football Club's annual report from late 1982 showed that the failure of the attempts made by South Australian and West Australian clubs to enter the VFL significantly impacted the club's understanding of its future. From this point Port Adelaide restructured the club in regards to economics, public relations and on-field performance for an attempt to enter the league in 1990. There was genuine feeling that failure to do this would result in the club ceasing to exist in the future. In 1985 Port Adelaide registered itself as a national football club. Sentiment at this time amongst the direction of Australian rules football in South Australia was succinctly encapsulated by a Michael Robinson article in the 1985 Football Times Yearbook that previewed the SANFL's upcoming season. In that article Robinson wrote about the disappointment of the equal gate sharing of match takings enforced by the SANFL for the upcoming season with the stronger South Australian clubs propping up ailing clubs such as Woodville.

"What would be left of the SA league without the great clubs such as Norwood and Port Adelaide? It would drop to a miserable fourth-class contest. No one could blame Norwood and Port Adelaide for wanting to get out of the SA league into national ranks if they are further threatened by the dragging down process.

— Michael Robinson in regards to impacts of gate revenue sharing adopted by the SANFL for the 1985 season on Norwood and Port Adelaide,

The following year the SANFL registered the name "Adelaide Football Club" in 1986 but ended up deciding against entering a team into the VFL. In 1986 Norwood Football Club made an independent approach to the VFL with entry into the league discussed in great detail but these discussions ultimately failed to materialise. In 1987 the West Coast Eagles and Brisbane Bears were admitted to the Victorian Football League leaving South Australia as the only mainland state without representation in the VFL.

"In 1988 a deputation from Norwood Football Club had announced it was interested in joining the VFL 'at any time in the future' and ... a private consortium headed by Ken Eustice was interested in grabbing a licence".

— Ross Oakley,

By 1989 seven out of ten SANFL clubs were recording losses and the combined income of the SANFL and WAFL had dropped to 40% of that of the VFL. The 1989 Port Adelaide annual report and November newsletter contrasted with the outlook of other SANFL and WAFL clubs. After its demolition of North Adelaide in the 1989 SANFL Grand Final holding its opposition to a single goal, the club claimed a profit in the annual report and hinted at its intentions the following year in the club newsletter by saying Port Adelaide was "far better than their nearest rival in the SANFL".

Top Left: On 9 August 1990 it was revealed Norwood had been in discussions with the AFL to join in 1991. However, after seeing the local media response to Port Adelaide's bid they sided with the SANFL. Norwood would again try to gain a licence during 1994 in a merger with Sturt.
Top Right: An injunction was won in the Supreme Court of South Australia preventing Port Adelaide from continuing its discussions with the AFL after 12 August 1990.
Bottom: Cartoon by Michael Atchison for the Adelaide Advertiser on 1 August 1990 equating the tensions between the SANFL and Port Adelaide over the latter's attempt to join the AFL with the then concurrent Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.

During early 1990 the SANFL had decided to wait three years before making any further decision. Frustrated with lack of progress, Port Adelaide were having secret negotiations in the town of Quorn for entry in 1991. A practice match organised by Port Adelaide and Geelong on 25 February at Football Park attracted at over 30,000 spectators and illustrated the potential of a South Australian side in the newly renamed national competition. Around the same time AFL was also seeking Norwood to join the national competition in 1990. However Norwood would eventually side with the SANFL after seeing the media reaction to Port Adelaide's attempts.

"They [the SANFL clubs] are not going to make that decision until they are at the lowest possible ebb. They'd be voting themselves into obscurity [opting for a composite team] in their state."

— Ross Oakley in regards to the other SANFL clubs opposing Port Adelaide's entry

When the knowledge of Port Adelaide Football Club's negotiations to gain an AFL licence were made public, the other SANFL clubs saw it as an act of treachery. Subsequently, the SANFL clubs, led by Glenelg and Norwood, urged Justice Olssen to make an injunction against the bid, which he agreed to. The SANFL promptly created a composite team to beat Port Adelaide's bid. The Adelaide Football Club gained what was very close to being Port Adelaide's licence to the AFL and began playing in 1991. The new Adelaide club would adopt the name "the Crows" after the states inhabitants often used the nickname "Crow-eaters". During this time the SANFL began suing people involved with Port Adelaide, including people volunteering in unpaid positions, with the AFL quickly stepping in to guarantee the protection of the club and associated people. In 2014 during an interview with the Adelaide Advertiser, Ross Oakley revealed that "In desperation to force (the SANFL's) hand...we began dealing directly with two powerhouse clubs of the SANFL, Norwood and Port Adelaide...we were changing the league's name to AFL – and we could not go without a team from Adelaide."

1990 SANFL Grand Final Last game without AFL in SA.	G	B	Total
Glenelg	13	15	93
Port Adelaide	16	12	108
Venue: Football Park	Crowd: 50,589

"These twenty blokes, everyone who has helped us, are sensational people and all the views that you have read in the press the one thing that really matters is that there will always be a Port Adelaide Football Club."

— George Fiacchi upon accepting the 1990 Jack Oatey Medal for best on ground at the 1990 SANFL Grand Final

"I want to tell you that you want to enjoy this moment for what it is because the good times are well and truly gone. Apart from Jack (John Cahill) and the players there are a couple of individuals out there who are responsible for that and make sure you enjoy tonight because the good times will not happen again."

— Glenelg coach and inaugural Adelaide coach Graham Cornes's address to the Port Adelaide change-rooms post the 1990 SANFL Grand Final

The front runners for the coaching job at the newly created club were both involved in the last SANFL game played in South Australia before the advent of a local AFL team, the 1990 SANFL Grand Final. In that game Port Adelaide, coached by John Cahill defeated Glenelg, coached by Graham Cornes, by 15 points. Graham Cornes ended up being selected to coach Adelaide for the 1991 AFL season. Cornes compiled a club list of the best players from South Australia, with few originating from other states, in what was almost a state side in the first year. Chris McDermott, captain of Glenelg in the 1990 SANFL Grand Final, was designated as the Crows inaugural captain. Despite Port Adelaide being SANFL premiers in 1990, only 5 players from the team became part of the Adelaide squad of 52. Those players being Bruce Abernethy, Simon Tregenza, David Brown, Darren Smith and Scott Hodges, with the last three joining Port Adelaide's inaugural AFL squad in 1997.

In 1992 Port Adelaide played a young Adelaide side in a pre-season match at Football Park on February 1 in what was the first meeting between the two clubs.

Second South Australian AFL licence

The admission of Adelaide to the AFL had a devastating impact on the league's attendances with the SANFL recording a 45% drop between 1990 and 1993. Port Adelaide defied this trend of falling SANFL attendances recording an increase of 13% from 1990 to 1993.

"I only hope petty jealousies and fears within the S.A.N.F.L. don't short circuit a Port Adelaide proposal which clearly seems better than any other"

— Tony Greenberg, Inside Football, June 1994,

In 1994 the AFL announced that South Australia would receive a licence for a second team based in the state. The major bids competing with Port Adelaide this time around were from merger club proposals in Norwood-Sturt, and Glenelg-South. On 15 June the SANFL handed down a report recommending the second license go to a team formed from the amalgamation of two clubs.

"The sub-licence should be granted to an amalgamation of two SANFL clubs"

— SANFL, Report on the Future Direction of Football in South Australia, 15 June 1994,

On 16 June it was reported in The Age by Stephen Linnell that "the League's preference was for a single, established club to join the league". The final tenders were submitted to the SANFL on 14 September 1994 including Port Adelaide's second application, Norwood–Sturt's merged club bid with the remaining application coming from Woodville–West Torrens.

"In my opinion coming second [not getting the second South Australian AFL licence] means you die"

— Michael Aish, Norwood champion, August 1994,

On 2 October Port Adelaide won the 1994 SANFL Grand Final, its fifth in seven years. On 13 December Port Adelaide won the tender for the second SA license over its various state rivals, however it was prevented from entering the competition before 1996 as stipulated in the Adelaide license agreement. In 1995 after an SANFL game at Football Park the Adelaide Crows began carrying out a training session which was interrupted by a large horde of Port Adelaide supporters chanting "We're coming to get you". Adelaide coach Robert Shaw was the only Adelaide official to confront the horde. In 1996 Port Adelaide was left to wait again as a vacancy was required in the league.

It was announced on 27 October 1995 that Port Adelaide would be participating in the 1997 AFL season, one season later than initially planned and seven years after the club's first failed bid in 1990.

Other contributing factors to rivalry

Along with the circumstances of the two clubs entries into the national competition are numerous other factors that fuel the rivalry.

Lingering resentment

Labor politician and Norwood / Crows supporter Gordon Bilney said he would barrack for the Liberals before barracking for Port Adelaide.

Many supporters of traditionally strong South Australian clubs other than Port Adelaide, such as Norwood, Sturt, Glenelg and North Adelaide, were left frustrated that Port Adelaide were the only SANFL club to make the transition to the AFL.

"I cannot even begin to imagine the joy of seeing Norwood players run on to the MCG in an AFL final – or even a home and away game...We would never again see some of the country's best players slip on our club's jumper while in their prime."

— David Washington, InDaily, 2014

"Victorians say they hate Collingwood in the way that people say they hate snails getting into their garden and eating their lettuces. Let's call a spade a spade. If Port Adelaide were the last team on earth and they were playing a scratch outfit made up of child molesters, axe murderers, failed entrepreneurs and Liberal politicians, I'd barrack for the Liberals...Norwood people especially loathe Port Adelaide with a passion. Can I speak too badly of them? No, I can't."

— Gordon Bilney, The Age, 2002

Player recruitment

Steven Motlop (left) and Jordan Dawson (right) were the subject of bidding wars between Adelaide and Port Adelaide. Both kicked match winning goals in their first Showdown appearances.

Due to the inherent nature of being the only two South Australian clubs in the competition, when a player seeks to move to the state both clubs often vigorously compete for the players signature. This also applies during the AFL Draft when both clubs will jostle for position to gain local talent. Two notable examples of this characteristic were the bidding wars between the two clubs for Steven Motlop and Jordan Dawson. Both players in their first Showdown appearances, Motlop for Port Adelaide after leaving Geelong and Dawson for Adelaide after leaving Sydney, kicked match winning goals for their new clubs.

Guernsey issues

In 2005 for the AFL's Heritage Round, Adelaide decided to wear an iteration of the South Australian state guernsey, with the 'AFC' monogram instead of the 'SA' monogram, which was originally worn in 1930. During the same match Port Adelaide were blocked by the AFL from wearing the club's Prison Bar guernsey.

"The Adelaide football team and the SA state side are two separate identities – and they should not be confused."

— John Halbert, The Advertiser, 2005

Bob Quinn's 1947 South Australian state football team guernsey is on display at Alberton Oval. The state guernsey was a point of controversy in 2014.

In February 2014, Adelaide announced that they would wear the South Australian state guernsey in the first Showdown at Adelaide Oval. This left Port Adelaide fans particularly aggrieved as many of their greats had worn the South Australia guernsey in the past. Port Adelaide released a statement at the time saying that the state guernsey was "a symbol of South Australian football unification, not division". Others commented that it would be misappropriation to use a State guernsey for a club based competition with players who came from interstate being forced to wear a symbol of South Australia.

My father wore that state jumper to represent SA. So did I. So did many others. That jumper is sacred in my books...I spoke to Eddie McGuire today and suggested Carlton might wear the Big V in a heritage game. You can imagine the reaction. Clubs don't get to wear state jumpers...

— Stephen Kernahan comments on the South Australian state guernsey

Shortly after unveiling the guernsey, Adelaide were denied permission to wear it by the SANFL. Port Adelaide meanwhile were granted permission by the AFL to wear their traditional "Prison Bar" guernsey for the only Showdown in 2020, as part of the club's 150th anniversary celebrations. The club requested it wear the guernsey in all future matches between the teams, which was rejected by Collingwood and the AFL. The club negotiated an agreement with Collingwood to return the guernsey for the 2023 home Showdown match; an agreement which has since been extended to include all future home showdown matches.

Competitiveness

The Showdown has a history of upsets with ladder ranking and betting markets being a poor indicator of the final result. As of Showdown 44, over a third of meetings have gone the way of the lower ranked team. In addition to this the overall head-to-head lead has been held by both teams at different stages, has never gone beyond a differential of 6 and, as of Showdown 54 the ledger is tied at 27 wins each. This contrasts with the Western Derby where West Coast have never relinquished the lead of the head-to-head ledger and have at some stages held a 12 win differential over Fremantle and the Sydney Derby where the Sydney Swans have also never relinquished the lead of the head-to-head ledger and held a 7 win differential over the GWS Giants after 9 meetings.

Intrastate AFL Derby comparisons (men)
	Showdown	Western Derby	Sydney Derby	Q–Clash
Ledger	Adelaide lead by 1 against Port Adelaide	West Coast lead by 9 against Fremantle	Sydney Swans lead by 6 against GWS Giants	Brisbane Lions lead by 11 against Gold Coast
Lead	Defended by both sides	Never relinquished by West Coast	Never relinquished by Sydney	Held by both sides
Last updated 2024 R8

Notable matches

Round 4, 1997

The build up to the inaugural Showdown was described by Malcolm Blight as being akin to a Grand Final. Having won their first match in the AFL against Geelong the week before, a pumped up Port jumped the Crows in the first half and managed to hold on in the final quarter as the Crows mounted a comeback. Port Adelaide eventually defeated Adelaide by 11 points. The game notably also featured a fight between Port's Scott Cummings and Adelaide's Rod Jameson.

The battle of Adelaide has been fought and won. They brought with them a mountain of tradition, there's no denying that. A bonafide club, as distinct from the other. A club forged over many years. What an impact. There are a few chameleons in the crowd. I think a few changed during the course of the game. They found their roots.

— Dennis Cometti immediately after the siren had sounded signifying the end of the game

Dennis Cometti, commentator for the inaugural Showdown, later elaborated on his chameleon comment saying that when Adelaide entered the AFL some Port Adelaide supporters began to follow the new team as it was the only South Australian club competing on the national stage, but six years after their original club attempted to do the same, they reverted to supporting Port Adelaide after they won the first showdown.

	Showdown I
Sunday, 20 April (3:10 pm)	Adelaide	def. by	Port Adelaide	Football Park (crowd: 47,256)
	1.1 (7) 3.4 (22) 5.5 (35)  11.6 (72)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	1.6 (12) 5.10 (40) 9.14 (68)  11.17 (83)	Showdown Medal: Not Awarded Brownlow Votes: 3 Mead, 2 Breuer, 1 Lade Television broadcast: Seven Network
7: Modra 2: Rintoul 1: Standfield, Vardy		Goals	4: Cummings 2: Breuer, Downsborough 1: Burgoyne, Francou, Wilson
Modra, Ricciuto		Best	Mead, Breuer, Lade, Wilson
Jameson		Reports	Cummings

Round 5, 2002

The Ramsgate Hotel was the location of an altercation between the two sides in 2002.

The round 5, 2002 Showdown was the second time in a row Port Adelaide had won by 8 points. After the game about six players from both sides coincidentally came across each other at the Ramsgate Hotel in Henley Beach. During the match Josh Carr had been tagging Mark Ricciuto holding him to only 6 kicks (for comparison Ricciuto averaged 13 over his career). When the groups of players met at the Ramsgate Hotel, the two aforementioned players started an argument, and with the assistance of alcohol, a brawl between the two groups broke out. No one was badly injured. The publicity of this incident resulted in consecutive Showdown crowds in excess of 50,000 at Football Park. John Reid, former head of Adelaide Football Operations, was required (like his Port Adelaide counterpart) by the AFL to provide his players with a formal lecture regarding how the incident was unacceptable which upon completion he famously quipped "And I hope you won the fight!”.

	Showdown XI
Saturday, 27 April (7:10pm)	Adelaide	def. by	Port Adelaide	Football Park (crowd: 49,513)
	6.1 (37) 9.4 (58) 11.8 (74)  12.10 (82)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	3.0 (18) 6.0 (36) 10.3 (63)  14.6 (90)	Showdown Medal: Jarrad Schofield Brownlow Votes: 3 Schofield, 2 French, 1 Doughty Television broadcast: Network Ten
2: Stevens, Welsh, Burton, Johncock 1: Bickley, Bode, Goodwin, Stenglein		Goals	3: C. Cornes 2: Burgoyne, Wanganeen 1: Cockatoo-Collins, Guerra, James, Kingsley, Lade, Poulton, Tredrea

Round 7, 2004

Showdown XV is memorable for the magnitude of the upset that Adelaide pulled off and the fact that it ended Port Adelaide's 7 game winning streak in Showdowns. At the start of the game Port Adelaide had won 5 of its first 6 games whilst Adelaide had only managed one. The gambling markets had Adelaide at $5 to win the match, the longest odds offered in any Showdown at the time. Port Adelaide entered the first break with a 6-point lead but Adelaide coach Gary Ayres gave his side a spray and subsequently ran away with the game to cause arguably the biggest upset in Showdown history.

	Showdown XV
Saturday, 8 May (7:10 pm)	Port Adelaide	def. by	Adelaide	Football Park (crowd: 44,733)
	5.2 (32) 7.3 (45) 9.7 (61)  13.9 (87)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	4.2 (26) 11.6 (72) 14.14 (98)  17.17 (119)	Showdown Medal: Mark Ricciuto Brownlow Votes: 3 Stenglein, 2 Ricciuto, 1 Clarke Television broadcast: Network Ten
7: Tredrea 2: Ebert 1: Burgoyne, Cassisi, Cornes, Brogan		Goals	4: Johncock 3: Carey, McGregor 2: Jericho 1: Edwards, Welsh, Bock, Massie, Stenglein

2005 semi-final

In the 2005 AFL Finals Series, Adelaide and Port Adelaide met in a semi-final, the first time, and thus far only time in their history they had played against each other in a finals game. The stakes of a showdown had never been higher and South Australia experienced an unprecedented high anticipation to the game in the week leading up to the match. The match was known in the buildup as "The Ultimate Showdown". The first half of the game was an intense, defensive contest with the Crows leading 4.7 (31) to 3.6 (24) at the main break. Tempers almost boiled over in the second quarter after Adelaide ruckman Rhett Biglands was stretchered from the ground after a Byron Pickett shirtfront. However Biglands would return in the second half and the incident would eventually be deemed legal. After half time, Adelaide thrashed Port Adelaide outscoring them by 76 points cruising home for an 83-point win, ending Port Adelaide's season. This remains as the only final played between the two sides and the only final the two would ever play at Football Park. 2005 was also the only time one of the clubs had defeated the other side in 3 Showdowns in the same AFL season.

	Showdown XIX
Saturday, 10 September (7:00 pm)	Adelaide	def.	Port Adelaide	Football Park (crowd: 50,521)
	3.4 (22) 4.7 (31) 12.9 (81)  18.15 (123)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	2.1 (13) 3.6 (24) 4.6 (30)  5.10 (40)	Umpires: Michael Vozzo, Brett Allen, Scott McLaren Showdown Medal: Not Awarded Television broadcast: Network Ten
4: Welsh 3: Goodwin, Perrie 2: McGregor 1: Hentschel, Edwards, McLeod, Ricciuto, Rutten, Shirley		Goals	1: Mahoney, S.Burgoyne, Pearce, Pettigrew, Wanganeen
Edwards, Goodwin, Ricciuto, Clarke, Rutten, Bassett, Burton, McLeod		Best	C.Cornes, K.Cornes, Montgomery, Wakelin
Johncock (calf), Biglands, Shirley (head knock)		Injuries	Wilson (hamstring)
Nil		Reports	Nil

Round 3, 2008

Showdown 24 is often cited as the most physical meeting of the two clubs. Prior to Showdown 24 Port Adelaide had lost their two opening games of the 2008 AFL season and, coupled with their disastrous 2007 AFL Grand Final, Mark Williams demanded throughout the week at training leading up to the game that his players bring tough and physical brand of football to their next match. Early in the game, and a sign of things to come, Matt Thomas knocked out Nathan Bassett. Not long after Luke Jericho was bruised after a heavy collision with Port Adelaide ruckman Dean Brogan. In the last quarter Adelaide had four injured players on the bench resulting in Port Adelaide gaining all the momentum, kicking the last three goals of the match, with Daniel Motlop bringing the margin to 6 points with two minutes remaining. Despite this Adelaide managed to just hold on, despite losing a significant number of players, and limp to the siren for a win. The final 6-point margin was, at the time, the smallest in Showdown history and the result evened the ledger for the first time since 2000.

"Brogan has put Jericho down!...Gee that is a big hip-and-shoulder. Jericho has not moved."

— Dwayne Russell's call of the incident between Dean Brogan and Luke Jericho.

	Showdown XXIV
Sunday, 6 April (4:10 pm)	Adelaide	def.	Port Adelaide	Football Park (crowd: 45,524)
	2.3 (15) 4.8 (32) 8.11 (59)  12.13 (85)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	2.3 (15) 4.7 (31) 7.12 (54)  11.13 (79)	Showdown Medal: Bernie Vince Brownlow Votes: 3 Vince, 2 Thompson, 1 Rodan Television broadcast: Nine Network
3: Douglas 2: Vince, Goodwin 1: Edwards, McLeod, Burton, Griffin		Goals	4: S. Burgoyne 2: C. Cornes 1: Motlop, Rodan, Boak, Brogan
Vince, Johncock, Edwards, Rutten, Goodwin, Douglas, Thompson		Best	P. Burgoyne, Brogan, C. Cornes, Surjan, Cassisi, S. Burgoyne
Bassett (concussion), Jericho (back), Porplyzia (shoulder), Massie (hamstring)		Injuries	Nil
Nil		Reports	Thomas

Round 19, 2013

Diagram of Angus Monfries' goal kicked on the 50-metre line that bounced before the left behind line, significantly changed direction right, and crossed the goal line to bring Port Adelaide within 2 points of Adelaide with 87 seconds remaining

In 2013 Port Adelaide beat Adelaide in the final Showdown to be played at Football Park. The game was also memorable for Port Adelaide's late final quarter charge, coming back from 20 points in the last 6 minutes of the game. This included a goal by Angus Monfries from outside 50 that landed just in front of the Port Adelaide's point line, bounced at right angles and went through for a goal. Chad Wingard kicked his fifth goal in the last 28 seconds to hand Port Adelaide the lead and win. Port Adelaide winning this match meant the club had won the first, last and most Showdowns played at Football Park.

"Monfries has kicked a goal, unbelievable! That makes up for Robbie Gray in the first quarter...It's gone at right angles, right angles Tim! I haven't seen anything like that, if Pythagoras is watching, explain that!"

— Dennis Cometti's reaction to Angus Monfries' goal

	Showdown XXXV
Sunday, 4 August (2:50 pm)	Adelaide	def. by	Port Adelaide	Football Park (crowd: 43,368)	Report
	3.2 (20) 5.6 (36) 12.10 (82)  15.13 (103)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	2.1 (13) 9.3 (57) 11.4 (70)  17.5 (107)	Umpires: Stewart, Ryan, Jeffery Showdown Medal: Chad Wingard Brownlow Votes: 3 Wingard, 2 Crouch, 1 Dangerfield Television broadcast: Seven Network, Fox Footy (simulcast)
4: Johnston, Dangerfield 2: Petrenko, Wright 1: Grigg, Henderson, Brown		Goals	5: Wingard 3: Gray, Hartlett 2: Schulz, Monfries 1: Butcher, Colquhoun
Crouch, Dangerfield, Johnston, Mackay, Grigg, Vince		Best	Wingard, Hartlett, Gray, Boak, Cornes, Schulz
Nil		Injuries	Stewart (broken wrist)
Nil		Reports	Nil

Round 2, 2014

The round 2, 2014 Showdown on 29 March 2014 saw the first Showdown played at Adelaide Oval along with the first game of Australian rules football at the venue since its extensive redevelopment. Port Adelaide led from the start, with Matthew Lobbe kicking the first goal in an Adelaide Oval Showdown but Adelaide mounted a comeback and claimed the lead briefly in the third. After the halfway mark of the third quarter, Port Adelaide ran away with the game winning by 55 points.

"Port Adelaide will own this moment in history forever!"

— Dwayne Russell's statement as the siren sounded for the first Showdown at Adelaide Oval.

	Showdown XXXVI
Saturday, 29 March (4:15 pm)	Port Adelaide	def.	Adelaide	Adelaide Oval (crowd: 50,397)	Report
	5.4 (34) 7.8 (50) 12.11 (83)  19.14 (128)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	1.1 (7) 5.2 (32) 8.5 (53)  11.7 (73)	Umpires: Fleer, Schmitt, Pannell Showdown Medal: Hamish Hartlett Brownlow Votes: 3: Cornes, 2: Wingard. 1: Ebert Television broadcast: Fox Footy, Seven Network (simulcast) National anthem: Hugh Sheridan
4: Wingard 3: Schulz 2: Gray, Wines, White 1: Ebert, Hartlett, Boak, Butcher, Lobbe, Westhoff		Goals	4: Betts 3: Grigg 1: Smith, Podsiadly, Douglas, Kerridge, Johnston
Hartlett, Ebert, Cornes, Wingard, Schulz, Polec		Best	Sloane, Douglas, Betts, Thompson, Smith, Grigg
Polec (cut head)		Injuries	Shaw (wrist), Crouch (lower leg)
Nil		Reports	Nil

Round 16, 2015

The round 16, 2015 Showdown on 19 July 2015 had added significance due to the recent death of Crows senior coach Phil Walsh, who spent ten years as an assistant in two stints with Port Adelaide, including their 2004 premiership. The game lived up to expectation, with the Crows holding on desperately in the last quarter to win by three points, the closest margin in a Showdown. The game was played in front of 53,518, the largest attendance at the venue since the 1973 SANFL Grand Final. Scott Thompson was awarded the one off Phillip Walsh Medal, presented by Walsh's daughter Quinn.

	Showdown XXXIX
Sunday, 19 July (2:50 pm)	Port Adelaide	def. by	Adelaide	Adelaide Oval (crowd: 53,518)	[1]
	3.4 (22) 8.4 (52) 13.6 (84)  17.11 (113)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	6.1 (37) 11.3 (69) 18.6 (114)  18.8 (116)	Umpires: Deboy, Schmitt, Ryan Phil Walsh Medal: Scott Thompson Brownlow Votes: 3 Thompson, 2 Boak, 1 Jacobs Television broadcast: Seven Network, Fox Footy (simulcast)
3: Ryder, Wingard, Gray, Schulz 2: Lobbe, Boak 1: Monfries		Goals	3: Jenkins, Walker 2: Cameron, Lynch 1: Crouch, Laird, Henderson, Martin, Douglas, Knight, Betts, Wright, Thompson
Boak, Wingard, Ryder, Gray, Broadbent, Hartlett		Best	Jacobs, Thompson, Douglas, Walker, Dangerfield, Crouch, Laird, Henderson
Nil		Injuries	Talia (concussion)
Nil		Reports	Nil

Round 8, 2018

The round 8, 2018 Showdown held on 12 May 2018 was played at Adelaide Oval in front of a Port Adelaide home-crowd of 50,967. Despite Adelaide leading by 21 points at half-time, Port Adelaide managed to cut Adelaide's margin back to single figures with 5 minutes left in the third quarter. Robbie Gray kicked 2 goals late (his fourth and fifth of the quarter) to give Port Adelaide the lead at three-quarter time. The final quarter was largely played in Adelaide's forward half but they could not trouble the scoreboard. With less than three minutes to go, the game looked all-but over, but that was not the case. Adelaide managed three goals in little over 2 minutes to regain the lead with 42 seconds on the clock through a Mitch McGovern set shot. One last turn would see off-season Port Adelaide recruit Steven Motlop kick the winning goal with 21 seconds left. The celebration of Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley at the conclusion of the game, where he referenced the end of the Adelaide's five Showdown win streak, garnered significant media attention. Robbie Gray claimed a third Showdown Medal for his best on ground display. He managed 6 goals (5 of which in the third quarter).

"Flashpoint! Stevie Motlop, what a time!...He is floating on air now!"

— Anthony Hudson's call as Steven Motlop kicked the game winning goal.

	Showdown XLIV
Saturday, 12 May (4:40 pm)	Port Adelaide	def.	Adelaide	Adelaide Oval (crowd: 50,967)	[2]
	1.3 (9) 4.6 (30) 11.11 (77)  14.11 (95)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	4.2 (26) 8.3 (51) 10.5 (65)  14.6 (90)	Umpires: Donlon, Haussen, Meredith Showdown Medal: Robbie Gray Brownlow Votes: 3 R. Gray, 2 Atkins, 1 Rockliff Television broadcast: Fox Footy, Seven Network (simulcast)
6: R.Gray 2: Wingard, Ryder 1: S.Gray, Motlop, Boak, Powell-Pepper		Goals	3: Betts 2: Walker, Ellis-Yolmen, McGovern 1: Atkins, Jenkins, Douglas, Seedsman, Lynch
Gray, Jonas, Ryder, Rockliff, Powell-Pepper, Polec		Best	Laird, Atkins, Crouch, Talia, Gibbs, Ellis-Yolmen
Nil		Injuries	Walker (glute), Jacobs (back spasms), McGovern (ankle)
Powell-Pepper (2)		Reports	Crouch

Round 20, 2018

Showdown 45 was a tight contest for the entire game apart from the opening where the Crows kicked the first three goals of the match. Second gamer Kane Farrell kicked three goals to close out the first interval with the quarter time scores level and the margin thereafter never again reaching three goals. Late in the final quarter Ollie Wines had the opportunity to seal the game with a set shot from a tight angle but his banana kick was ineffective. Minutes after Wines shot, Josh Jenkins snapped and his score was referred to the goal review umpire to clarify whether it hit the post. The score was quickly ruled a goal by the goal review umpire despite Josh Jenkins calling his teammates to set up for a kick out. He later stated his doubt in a post game interview. Robbie Gray was awarded a record fourth Showdown Medal becoming just the third player, after Graham Johncock and Shaun Burgoyne, to win the honour coming from the losing side. After the match Port Adelaide challenged the AFL Score Review system questioning the short amount of time taken for the review (23 seconds) and the lack of camera angles available to the umpires. The AFL affirmed the decision that it was a goal.

"My grandma raised me not to tell fibs. I think it hit the post...but I'm pretty happy they didn't think so."

— Josh Jenkins during a post-game interview

	Showdown XLV
Saturday, 4 August (4:05 pm)	Adelaide	def.	Port Adelaide	Adelaide Oval (crowd: 50,377)
	5.3 (33) 7.8 (50) 9.14 (68)  13.18 (96)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	5.3 (33) 9.5 (59) 10.9 (69)  14.9 (93)	Umpires: Rosebury, Nicholls, Mitchell Showdown Medal: Robbie Gray Brownlow Votes: 3 Gray, 2 Bonner, 1 Rockliff Television broadcast: Fox Footy, Seven Network (simulcast)
3: Jenkins 2: Sloane 1: Walker, Betts, Murphy, Gallucci, Greenwood, Lynch, Doedee, Crouch		Goals	4: Gray, Wingard 3: Farrell 2: Boak 1: Byrne-Jones
Crouch, Gibbs, Jenkins, Sloane, Atkins, Doedee		Best	Gray, Polec, Wingard, Ryder, Byrne-Jones, Boak
Talia (right calf)		Injuries	Nil

Round 3, 2022

Showdown 51 was the first edition of the fixture to be played on Friday night, the AFL's marquee time-slot, although this match partially overlapped with a match between Melbourne and Essendon that was played simultaneously that night and was not broadcast free-to-air nationally. Entering the match both Adelaide and Port Adelaide were winless having lost their first two games. In the lead up to the game Adelaide director Mark Ricciuto publicly noted, regarding his players, that "They can't kick, they can't handball, they can't kick a goal, they've given away free kicks, they really can't do anything worse.” Also during the lead up to the game Kane Cornes called for Todd Marshall to be dropped from Port Adelaide's AFL side. Marshall would go on to kick a career best five goals during the match. Two minutes before the game ended Travis Boak had the opportunity to push the margin to 7 points but missed his shot, registering a behind and leaving the margin at two points. In the last minute of the game a late high contact free kick was paid to Lachlan Murphy against Port Adelaide's Sam Mayes approximately 45m out from goal. Murphy was unable to take the kick and the set shot was given to Jordan Dawson meaning that a kick after the siren would be required for Adelaide to win the game. The kick looked like it was heading straight for a behind until it swung left very late, going through for a goal. Dawson's goal gave the Crows their first win after the siren since Rod Jameson kicked the winner in 1991 against Fitzroy after the siren to win the game. This was also the first time that a Showdown had been decided after the siren.

"...It's coming back!"

— Jason Dunstall's live call of the flight of Jordan Dawson's game winning set shot.

	Showdown LI
Friday, 1 April (7:50 pm)	Adelaide	def.	Port Adelaide	Adelaide Oval (crowd: 39,190)
	2.1 (13) 7.3 (45) 10.5 (65)  15.6 (96)	Q1 Q2 Q3  Final	5.2 (32) 9.7 (61) 11.12 (78)  13.14 (92)	Showdown Medal: Jordan Dawson Brownlow Votes: 3 Dawson, 2 Boak, 1 Marshall Television broadcast: Fox Footy, Seven Network (simulcast)
Himmelberg, Gollant – 4 Dawson – 2 Schoenberg, Sholl, Rachele, McHenry, Cook – 1		Goals	5 – Marshall 2 – Mayes, Georgiades 1 – Motlop, Drew, Lycett, Frederick
Dawson, Schoenberg, O'Brien, Himmelberg		Best	Boak, Burton, Wines, Amon
Murphy (neck)		Injuries	Skinner (ankle)

Results

The two clubs sometimes meet in preseason fixtures, such as the first meeting between the two clubs in 1992, however these are not official Showdowns and do not contribute to the official statistics of the fixture. While the AFL draw is not a complete double round robin it is designed each year to include two Showdowns in recognition of its significance and gate drawing power. For the 2020 season only, there was only one Showdown due to the premiership season being shortened to 17 rounds due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Showdown Medal

The Showdown Medal is the medal awarded to the player adjudged best on ground in the Showdown AFL match.

Further information: Showdown Medal

Shared history

Shared players

Below is a list of players who have played a senior game of football representing both the Adelaide Football Club and Port Adelaide Football Club.
Only two players, Matthew Bode and Brett Chalmers, have appeared in Showdowns for both clubs.

Men

#	Player	Adelaide AFL: 1991–present	Port Adelaide AFL: 1997–present SANFL: pre 1997
1	Darren Smith	1991R1–1992	1984–1990, 1991–1992*, 1993–1996
	Simon Tregenza	1991R1–1998	1988–1990, 1991–1996*
3	Scott Hodges	1991R2–1993	1987–1990, 1991–1993*, 1996–1997
4	Bruce Abernethy	1991R3–1992	1979–1981, 1987–1990, 1991–1992*
	Danny Hughes	1991R3	1981–1983, 1991*, 1992–1993
6	David Brown	1991R12–1996	1987–1990, 1991–1996*, 1997–1998
7	Greg Anderson	1993–1996	1983–1987, 1995–1996
8	Brett Chalmers	1994–1997	1991–1992, 1994–1997, 1998–1999
9	Andrew McLeod	1995–2010	1994, 1995–1996
10	Troy Bond	1996–1999	1991–1993
11	Ian Downsborough	1998–1999	1997
12	Bryan Beinke	1999–2002	1993–1996
13	Matthew Bode	2001–2007	1998–2000
14	Brad Symes	2008–2012	2004–2007
15	Billy Frampton	2020–2022	2018–2019
*Years underlined indicate periods where players were on Adelaide's AFL list but played for Port Adelaide between 1991 and 1996 when the club's senior team was still in the SANFL. Where names are bold the player participated in a Showdown for both clubs.

Women

#	Player	Adelaide AFLW: 2017–present	Port Adelaide AFLW: 2022–present
1	Erin Phillips	2017R1–2022	2022R6
	Ange Foley	2017R1–2022	2022R6
	Justine Mules	2017R1–2022	2022R6
2	Ashleigh Saint	2021–2022S7	2023R1
	Sarah Goodwin	2023R1	2022S7
*Where names are bold the player participated in a Showdown for both clubs.

AFL trades

Below is a list of AFL sanctioned trades between the two clubs. Only four trades have ever been orchestrated between the two clubs. There were no trades for ten years between 2008 and 2018.

#	Year	Player	Traded from	Traded to
1	1997	Ian Downsborough	Port Adelaide	Adelaide
		Brett Chalmers	Adelaide	Port Adelaide
2	2000	Matthew Bode	Port Adelaide	Adelaide
		Pick No. 12 (Shaun Burgoyne)	Adelaide	Port Adelaide
3	2007	Brad Symes	Port Adelaide	Adelaide
		Pick No. 28 (Marlon Motlop)	Adelaide	Port Adelaide
4	2019	Billy Frampton	Port Adelaide	Adelaide
		2020 4th Round Pick (Melbourne)	Adelaide	Port Adelaide

Attendances and timeslots

The inaugural AFL Women's Showdown attracted 20,625 spectators. Pictured is Ashleigh Woodland attempting a spectacular mark during that match.

The Showdown has the highest average attendances of all intrastate derby matches.

In the 45 Showdowns to 2018, a total of 2,017,918 people have attended the matches: an average attendance per match of 44,893.

The record attendance in a Showdown was 53,698 in Showdown XLII (round 3, 2017, a Port Adelaide home match). The lowest attendance was 2,240 in Showdown XLVIII (round 2, 2020, a Port Adelaide home match), due to the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic at the time. Showdown XXV (Round 16, 2008, a Port Adelaide home match), which drew a crowd of 31,662, is the lowest attended Showdown that was not impacted by COVID-19.

A total of 1,053,674 people have attended Adelaide's 23 home Showdowns (including the 2005 Semi Final), an average of 45,812. Their attendances have ranged from 40,296 (Showdown IX) to 51,140 (Showdown XIII).

A total of 966,484 people have attended Port Adelaide's 23 home Showdowns, an average of 42,021. Their attendances range from 2,240 (Showdown XLVIII) to 53,698 (Showdown XLII).

Minor round fixturing

Due to the length of the AFL premiership season requiring five double up matches and the commercial strength of the Showdown there have always been two Showdown's fixtured for the minor round, with the exception of 2020 which saw only one Showdown scheduled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Generally the gap between the two Showdown fixtures is maximised to preserve the games reverence.

Duration between fixtures
Within minor round	Shortest turnaround	8 rounds	2019
	Longest turnaround	20 rounds	2016, 2022
Between seasons	Shortest turnaround	231 days	2016–2017
	Longest turnaround	343 days	2019–2020

Club records

Highest score

Highest score in a Showdown.

Showdown (Men)

#	Club	Year	Round	Goals	Behinds	Total
1	Port Adelaide	2001	3	23	15	153
2	Adelaide	1998	19	22	12	144
		2016	2

Showdown (Women)

#	Club	Year	Round	Goals	Behinds	Total
1	Adelaide	2022	6	8	15	63
2	Port Adelaide	2023	1	4	4	28

Lowest score

Lowest score for each club in all Showdowns.

Showdown (Men)

#	Club	Year	Round	Goals	Behinds	Total
1	Adelaide	2020	2	5	5	35
2	Port Adelaide	2005	SF	5	10	40

Showdown (Women)

#	Club	Year	Round	Goals	Behinds	Total
1	Port Adelaide	2022	6	0	3	3
2	Adelaide	2023	1	8	10	58

Greatest winning margins

Greatest winning margin for each club in the Showdown.

Showdown (Men)

#	Club	Year	Round	Winning Score	Losing Score	Margin
1	Adelaide	2017	20	18.22 (130)	7.4 (46)	84
2	Port Adelaide	2020	2	17.8 (110)	5.5 (35)	75

Showdown (Women)

#	Club	Year	Round	Winning Score	Losing Score	Margin
1	Adelaide	2022	6	8.15 (63)	0.3 (3)	60

Smallest winning margins

Smallest winning margin for each club in the Showdown.

Showdown (Men)

#	Club	Year	Round	Winning Score	Losing Score	Margin
1	Adelaide	2018	20	13.18 (96)	14.9 (93)	3
		2015	16	18.8 (116)	17.11 (113)
2	Port Adelaide	2013	19	17.5 (107)	15.13 (103)	4
		2021	21	7.13 (55)	7.9 (51)
Updated to Showdown LIV (54).

Showdown (Women)

#	Club	Year	Round	Winning Score	Losing Score	Margin
1	Adelaide	2023	1	8.10 (58)	4.4 (28)	30

Winning streak

Showdown (Men)

#	Club	Winning Streak	Showdowns
1	Port Adelaide	7	8–14
2	Adelaide	5	39–43

Showdown (Women)

#	Club	Winning Streak	Showdowns
1	Adelaide	2	1–2

Clean sweeps

Seasons when one club has won all Showdown fixtures. There was only one Showdown in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

#	Club	Clean Sweeps	Total
1	Port Adelaide	2001, 2002, 2003, 2010, 2013, 2021	6
2	Adelaide	20051, 2007, 2012, 2016, 2017, 2023	6
Updated to Showdown LIV (54).

¹Includes the 2005 semi-final. This is the only (as of 2020) time that either side has won all three Showdowns in the one season (including finals).

Brownlow Votes

#	Club	Total Votes	Unique Players
1	Port Adelaide	166 votes	38
2	Adelaide	152 votes	37
Updated to Showdown LIV (54).

Player records

Travis Boak has played the most Showdowns (31) of any player.

Taylor Walker has kicked the most goals of anyone in Showdowns.

Robbie Gray has won 5 Showdown Medals.

Games played

Showdown appearances (Men)
#	Player	Club	Showdowns
1	Travis Boak	Port Adelaide	31
2	Kane Cornes	Port Adelaide	27
	Andrew McLeod	Adelaide
4	Scott Thompson	Adelaide	25
	Justin Westhoff	Port Adelaide
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Showdown appearances (Women)
#	Player	Club	Showdowns
1	21 players	Adelaide	1
	21 players	Port Adelaide	1
Updated to AFLW Showdown I.

Goalkickers

Most goals kicked in one Showdown

Most goals in one Showdown (Men)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Goals
1	Tony Modra	Adelaide	1997 R4	7
	Peter Vardy	Adelaide	1998 R19
	Warren Tredrea	Port Adelaide	2004 R7
	Taylor Walker	Adelaide	2023 R20
5	Gavin Wanganeen	Port Adelaide	2001 R3	6
	Taylor Walker	Adelaide	2012 R5
	Ricky Henderson	Adelaide	2012 R15
	Tom Lynch	Adelaide	2016 R2
	Robbie Gray	Port Adelaide	2018 R8
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most goals in one Showdown (Women)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Goals
1	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	20227 R6	3
2	Yvonne Bonner	Adelaide	2023 R1	2
	Ashleigh Saint	Port Adelaide	2023 R1
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Most Showdown career goals

Most career Showdown goals (Men)
#	Player	Club	Goals	Games
1	Taylor Walker	Adelaide	53	23
2	Robbie Gray	Port Adelaide	40	22
3	Eddie Betts	Adelaide	35	12
4	Justin Westhoff	Port Adelaide	32	25
5	Warren Tredrea	Port Adelaide	30	23
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most career Showdown goals (Women)
#	Player	Club	Goals	Games
1	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	3	2
2	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	2	2
	Ashleigh Saint	Port Adelaide	2	1
	Yvonne Bonner	Adelaide	2	1
5	11 Players	Both Clubs	1	-
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Career Brownlow votes

#	Player	Club	Votes	Games
1	Josh Francou	Port Adelaide	14	15
2	Travis Boak	Port Adelaide	14	28
3	Robbie Gray	Port Adelaide	12	22
4	Mark Ricciuto	Adelaide	11	18
5	Gavin Wanganeen	Port Adelaide	10	17
	Andrew McLeod	Adelaide	10	27
	Patrick Dangerfield	Adelaide	10	13
	Sam Jacobs	Adelaide	10	15
Updated to Showdown LIV (54).

#	Player	Club	Votes	Games
1	Niamh Kelly	Adelaide	3	1
	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	3	2
	Anne Hatchard	Adelaide	3	2
	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	3	2
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Disposals

Most career Showdown disposals

Most career Showdown disposals (Men)
#	Player	Club	Disposals	Games
1	Travis Boak	Port Adelaide	723	31
2	Scott Thompson	Adelaide	614	25
3	Kane Cornes	Port Adelaide	580	27
4	Andrew McLeod	Adelaide	539	27
5	Rory Laird	Adelaide	493	19
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most career Showdown disposals (Women)
#	Player	Club	Disposals	Games
1	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	56	2
2	Anne Hatchard	Adelaide	53	2
3	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	41	2
4	Erin Phillips	Port Adelaide	36	2
5	Madison Newman	Adelaide	33	2
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Most disposals in one Showdown

Most disposals in one Showdown (Men)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Disposals
1	Mark Ricciuto	Adelaide	2000 R7	41
	Peter Burgoyne	Port Adelaide	2008 R3
	Tom Rockliff	Port Adelaide	2019 R8
4	Simon Goodwin	Adelaide	2007 R18	39
	Patrick Dangerfield	Adelaide	2012 R5
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most disposals in one Showdown (Women)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Disposals
1	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	2023 R1	32
2	Anne Hatchard	Adelaide	2023 R1	30
3	Niamh Kelly	Adelaide	2023 R1	28
4	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	20227 R6	27
5	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	20227 R6	24
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Hitouts

Most career Showdown hitouts

#	Player	Club	Hitouts	Games
1	Sam Jacobs	Adelaide	536	15
2	Reilly O'Brien	Adelaide	356	10
3	Brendon Lade	Port Adelaide	347	22
4	Matthew Lobbe	Port Adelaide	288	11
5	Dean Brogan	Port Adelaide	253	16
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

#	Player	Club	Hitouts	Games
1	Montana McKinnon	Adelaide	33	2
2	Matilda Scholz	Port Adelaide	14	1
3	Jessica Allan	Adelaide	12	1
	Caitlin Gould	Adelaide		2
5	Olivia Levicki	Port Adelaide	11	2
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Most Hitouts in one Showdown

Most Hitouts in one Showdown (Men)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Hitouts
1	Sam Jacobs	Adelaide	2012 R15	61
2	Sam Jacobs	Adelaide	2015 R16	51
3	Reilly O'Brien	Adelaide	2022 R23	50
4	Paddy Ryder	Port Adelaide	2017 R3	48
5	Reilly O'Brien	Adelaide	2022 R3	45
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most Hitouts in one Showdown (Women)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Hitouts
1	Montana McKinnon	Adelaide	2022 R6	21
2	Matilda Scholz	Port Adelaide	2023 R1	14
3	Montana McKinnon	Adelaide	2023 R1	12
3	Jessica Allan	Adelaide	2023 R1	12
5	Olivia Levicki	Port Adelaide	2022 R6	9
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Clearances

Most career Showdown clearances

Most career Showdown clearances (Men)
#	Player	Club	Clearances	Games
1	Travis Boak	Port Adelaide	139	31
2	Scott Thompson	Adelaide	124	25
3	Ollie Wines	Port Adelaide	103	19
4	Robbie Gray	Port Adelaide	100	22
5	Simon Goodwin	Adelaide	87	23
	Matt Crouch	Adelaide		13
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most career Showdown clearances (Women)
#	Player	Club	Clearances	Games
1	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	12	2
2	Teah Charlton	Adelaide	8	2
	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide		2
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Most clearances in a Showdown

#	Player	Club	Fixture	Clearances
1	Patrick Dangerfield	Adelaide	2015 R5	14
2	Josh Francou	Port Adelaide	1999 R21	13
	Patrick Dangerfield	Adelaide	2015 R16
	Scott Thompson	Adelaide	2015 R16
Updated to Showdown LIV (54).

Most clearances in one Showdown (Women)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Clearances
1	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	2023 R1	7
	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	2022 R6
2	Niamh Kelly	Adelaide	2023 R1	6

Contested possessions

Most career Showdown contested possessions

Most career Showdown contested possessions (Men)
#	Player	Club	Contested possessions	Games
1	Travis Boak	Port Adelaide	314	31
2	Scott Thompson	Adelaide	267	25
3	Robbie Gray	Port Adelaide	228	22
4	Ollie Wines	Port Adelaide	219	19
5	Rory Sloane	Adelaide	206	20
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most career Showdown contested possessions (Women)
#	Player	Club	Contested possessions	Games
1	Anne Hatchard	Adelaide	28	2
2	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	25	2
3	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	22	2
4	Erin Phillips	Port Adelaide	18	2
5	Abbey Dowrick	Port Adelaide	16	2
Updated to Showdown II (2).

Most contested possessions in one Showdown

Most contested possessions in one Showdown (Men)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Contested possessions
1	Rory Sloane	Adelaide	2017 R3	24
2	Tom Rockliff	Port Adelaide	2019 R8	23
3	Robbie Gray	Port Adelaide	2016 R2	22
	Scott Thompson	Adelaide	2015 R16
	Patrick Dangerfield	Adelaide	2014 R15
Last update from Showdown LIV (55).

Most contested possessions in one Showdown (Women)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Contested possessions
1	Anne Hatchard	Adelaide	2022 R6	15
2	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	2022 R6	14
3	Anne Hatchard	Adelaide	2023 R1	13
	Gemma Houghton	Port Adelaide	2023 R1
	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	2023 R1
Last update from Showdown II (2).

Contested Marks

Most career Showdown contested marks

Most career Showdown contested marks (Men)
#	Player	Club	Contested Marks	Games
1	Chad Cornes	Port Adelaide	42	24
2	Warren Tredrea	Port Adelaide	36	23
3	Taylor Walker	Adelaide	34	23
4	Justin Westhoff	Port Adelaide	32	25
5	Charlie Dixon	Port Adelaide	31	13
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most career Showdown contested marks (Women)
#	Player	Club	Contested Marks	Games
1	Anne Hatchard	Adelaide	6	2
2	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	4	2
3	Gemma Houghton	Port Adelaide	2	1
	Matilda Scholz	Port Adelaide	2	1
	Chelsea Bidell	Adelaide	2	2
	Caitlin Gould	Adelaide	2	2
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Most contested marks in one Showdown

#	Player	Club	Fixture	Contested Marks
1	Chad Cornes	Port Adelaide	2004 R7	6
	Kurt Tippett	Adelaide	2011 R4
	Justin Westhoff	Port Adelaide	2011 R4
	Charlie Dixon	Port Adelaide	2023 R20
4	Trent Henschel	Adelaide	2005 SF	5
	Taylor Walker	Adelaide	2017 R20
	Aliir Aliir	Port Adelaide	2021 R21
	Riley Thilthorpe	Adelaide	2022 R23
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

#	Player	Club	Fixture	Contested Marks
1	Anne Hatchard	Adelaide	2022 R6	6
2	Chelsea Randall	Adelaide	2022 R6 2023 R1	2
	Chelsea Biddell	Adelaide	2023 R1
	Matilda Scholz	Port Adelaide	2023 R1
	Gemma Houghton	Port Adelaide	2023 R1
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Tackles

Most career Showdown tackles

Most career Showdown tackles (Men)
#	Player	Club	Tackles	Games
1	Scott Thompson	Adelaide	141	25
2	Travis Boak	Port Adelaide	138	31
3	Rory Sloane	Adelaide	110	20
4	Domenic Cassisi	Port Adelaide	109	20
5	Ollie Wines	Port Adelaide	101	19
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most career Showdown tackles (Women)
#	Player	Club	Tackles	Games
1	Abbey Dowrick	Port Adelaide	15	2
2	Justine Mules	Port Adelaide	14	2
3	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	13	2
4	Teah Charlton	Adelaide	12	2
	Abbie Ballard	Adelaide
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Most tackles in one Showdown

Most tackles in one Showdown (Men)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Tackles
1	Domenic Cassisi	Port Adelaide	2008 R16	13
	Hugh Greenwood	Adelaide	2017 R20
	Rory Sloane	Adelaide	2019 R8
	Rory Laird	Adelaide	2023 R20
5	Domenic Cassisi	Port Adelaide	2010 R17	12
	Hugh Greenwood	Adelaide	2018 R8
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Most tackles in one Showdown (Women)
#	Player	Club	Fixture	Tackles
1	Ebony Marinoff	Adelaide	2022 R6	11
2	Jacqui Yorston	Port Adelaide	2022 R6	8
	Abbey Dowrick	Port Adelaide	2023 R1
	Justine Mules	Port Adelaide	2023 R1
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (2).

Player winning record

Showdown players ranked by win percentage (minimum 10 Showdowns).

#	Player	Club	Win	Loss	Win %
1	Josh Carr	Port Adelaide	10	0	100
2	Jarrad Schofield	Port Adelaide	8	2	80.0
3	Matt Crouch	Adelaide	10	3	76.9
5	Nick Stevens	Port Adelaide	7	3	70.0
	Rory Atkins	Adelaide
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Coaching records

Showdown coaches are ranked by total wins followed by win percentage.

Showdown coaching record

Showdown coaching record (Men)
Current Adelaide coach Matthew Nicks (left) and Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley (right)
#	Coach	Club	Win	Loss	Win %
1	Mark Williams	Port Adelaide	13	11	54.2
2	Ken Hinkley	Port Adelaide	10	11	47.6
3	Neil Craig	Adelaide	8	7	53.3
4	Don Pyke	Adelaide	6	2	75.0
5	Matthew Nicks	Adelaide	4	4	50
6	Malcolm Blight	Adelaide	3	3	50.0
	Brenton Sanderson
8	John Cahill	Port Adelaide	2	2	50.0
9	Matthew Primus	Port Adelaide	2	3	40.0
10	Gary Ayres	Adelaide	2	7	22.2
11	Scott Camporeale	Adelaide	1	0	100
	Mark Bickley
13	Phil Walsh	Adelaide	0	1	0.0
Updated to Showdown LV (55).

Showdown coaching record (Women)
Current Adelaide Women's coach Matthew Clarke (left) and Port Adelaide Women's coach Lauren Arnell (right)
#	Coach	Club	Win	Loss	Win %
1	Matthew Clarke	Adelaide	2	0	100
2	Lauren Arnell	Port Adelaide	0	2	0.0
Updated to AFLW Showdown II (22).

Naming rights sponsors

Since the first Showdown in 1997 the fixture has always had a naming rights sponsor.

West End

The first naming rights sponsor was the South Australian Brewing Company (SABC) who utilised the fixture to promote West End Draught. SABC was responsible for the coining of the 'Showdown' name for the rivalry.

Balfours

Balfours, a South Australian wholesale bakery, became the naming rights sponsor for the Showdown in 2008. As part of their efforts in promoting the game Balfours began, and continue, to produce donuts in the colors of the two competing teams.

Variety

Variety, a charity for disadvantaged children, became the current naming rights sponsor for the Showdown in 2018.

Spin offs

Cricket

Adelaide Oval scoreboard during the Bushfire T20 Showdown.

Two Showdowns have taken place as Twenty20 cricket matches doubling as charity fundraisers for bushfire relief. In 2009, the two clubs played at Football Park what was dubbed as SA Footy's Bushfire Bash For Cash. In the aftermath of the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season which severely impacted Kangaroo Island and parts of the Adelaide Hills, the two clubs played another such game, this time at Adelaide Oval. Dubbed the Bushfire T20 Showdown, it also included members of the Adelaide Strikers of the Big Bash League participating including Australian internationals Alex Carey, who was also previously Greater Western Sydney's TAC Cup captain, and Strikers captain Travis Head. The game proved a success with 34,219 spectators collectively raising $1,015,239 by the end of the match for the South Australian Bushfire Appeal. Seven Network broadcast the match with commentators including James Brayshaw, Greg Blewett, Mark Soderstrom and Jason Gillespie.

Sunday, 2 February 2020 Scorecard

Port Adelaide	v	Adelaide
231/7 (20 overs) Travis Boak 44 (23) Hamish Hartlett 2/9 (2 overs)		217/8 (20 overs) Tom Lynch 38 (24) Rashid Khan 2/11 (3 overs)

Port Adelaide won by 14 runs Adelaide Oval, Adelaide

• Port Adelaide won the toss and elected to bat.

Slowdown

Tony Modra being interviewed after the 2011 Slowdown

Main article: West End Slowdown

A charity spin off of the Showdown also included an annual 'Slowdown' that raised money for various charities. Slowdown's often featured retired Adelaide, Port Adelaide and SANFL players along with local celebrities.

See also

• Port Adelaide-Norwood SANFL rivalry
• 1990 SANFL Grand Final
• West End Slowdown
• Western Derby: The AFL Intrastate Derby of Western Australia, first played in 1995. (West Coast Eagles Vs. Fremantle Dockers).
• QClash: The AFL intrastate Derby of Queensland, first played in 2011. (Brisbane Lions Vs. Gold Coast Suns)
• Sydney Derby: The AFL Intrastate Derby of New South Wales, first played in 2012. (Sydney Swans Vs. Greater Western Sydney Giants).