Collingwood unveils super petty banner in AFL feud

Collingwood won’t let its feud with Port Adelaide go.

The two AFL clubs have been at war with each other over the Power’s right — or lack thereof — to wear their traditional “prison bar” guernsey in Showdowns against the Crows.

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Former Pies president Eddie McGuire made it his mission to ensure Collingwood remained the only team to don black and white stripes and the club has continued to fight that battle even after McGuire quit his post earlier this year.

The ex-Magpies powerbroker engaged in a slanging match with Port president David Koch and now the Collingwood cheer squad has come to the party, delivering a not-so-subtle message with its banner for Sunday afternoon’s agonising 8.11 (59) to 8.10 (58) loss to the Power at the MCG.

The Pies poked fun at Port’s jumper and the way the South Australian team sings Never Tear Us Apart at home games in Adelaide.

Collingwood’s banner read: “Is black & white ours? Without a doubt, yes. Stick to wearing teal and wrecking INXS.”

It’s not the first time Collingwood has had some fun with its choice of banner this season, delivering a cracker for a game against Gold Coast at the start of the month.

This weekend’s banner is retaliation after Port took trolling to elite levels following a victory in the Showdown against cross-town rivals Adelaide earlier in May.

The AFL rejected the Power’s bid to wear its prison bar guernsey in that game, so Ken Hinkley’s troops rocked the traditional teal strip. However, they changed into the prison bar jumper to sing the team song after returning to the dressing room following the fulltime siren.

Coach Hinkley said it was a landmark moment for his club.

“It‘s a show of respect for our heritage, for our past and for our great people who played in it in our past and for our people who turn up and represent this footy club. We started and we began as Port Adelaide and we still are,” Hinkley said after the game.

“Part of that journey is this amazing jumper which the boys love and the club loves and every one of the people who support this footy club love it. We had to wait until after the game but we‘ll recognise it as often as we have to.”

Port Adelaide wins a thriller

Collingwood dominated the opening quarter, kicking the first three goals of the match as it looked to bounce back from a demoralising loss to Sydney last week.

At halftime the Pies led 30-15 but the visitors recovered in the second half to tighten the screws in a low-scoring affair.

Collingwood was still ahead by 13 points heading into the final quarter but wilted in the dying stages. Goals to Sam Powell-Pepper and Ollie Wines created a 13-point buffer the other way for Port Adelaide before two Collingwood majors reduced the deficit to one.

Sadly, that was all she wrote for Nathan Buckley’s troops.