“Wins away are really tough, and I don't think ours is any more significantly bad than other teams that play away,” Hardwick said. “That's the harsh reality of our game. We have played all the really good sides interstate.

“Port was the better team on the night. I don't think it was an overly great game for both sides. It was a tough, hard-fought contest, but pretty tough conditions; wet under foot, high stoppage, high contest. We just didn't get the job done.

“We didn't gain a lot from the game, to be fair. We didn't play anywhere near the level of expectation for us. We expected a better performance than that. I was really disappointed with our contested ball number and the manner we were in around the conference. I thought Port looked a lot cleaner and we probably fumbled a bit.”

Richmond were floored by Port's seven-goal second term, which Hardwick blamed on a breakdown in system rather than a lapse of concentration. There was also his frustration at three goals coming from free kicks during that period. “We're 18th in the competition for free kicks against,” he lamented.

“We gave away eight frees in our defensive 50 and again tonight. Things which we can control we have to get better; those sort of things don't help. It is something that we will look at – it's not often that we will give away seven goals.”

Hardwick, however, dismissed any notion about contentment. “We still feel we are the hunter to be honest; that's the way we play, but not that way tonight,” he said.

“I thought they out-hunted us in-around the contest. The contested ball numbers probably back that up ... we have got some work to do in that part of our game.”

Dustin Martin will return from seeing his father in New Zealand on Monday night, and Hardwick seems sure he will be available for next Sunday's game against Geelong at the MCG after missing a game with calf soreness. Daniel Rioli will return for his first AFL game this season after his serious ankle injury.

Apart from the premiership points, Port coach Ken Hinkley had plenty to be happy about, especially with players returning to top form including Chad Wingard, who was impressive playing on the ball.

Of course, a coach is never entirely happy. “We're not as consistent as we would like to be; we're still trying to get better,” Hinkley said.

“We haven't played brilliant football; we've found a way to win games and that's important. The competition ... it is a shocking thing to keep talking about, but it is hard every week and you have to be on your game.

“We've got our contested ball in a pretty good shape in the last month and that's important, albeit we haven't won every game. We fighting it out and winning the strong inside ball, which is important to the success of our football team.”

The win wasn't great, but it was significant when considering Port's recent tough campaign. They went into this game having flown almost 22,000km in 35 days for a 42-point loss to West Coast Eagles in Perth, a five-point Showdown win, a 40-point win over Gold Coast Suns in Shanghai, China, and a three-point loss to Hawthorn in Launceston, with a bye in between.

The Power now play Western Bulldogs, who are coming off a bye, at Adelaide Oval next Thursday night, then another Friday night game at home against Melbourne, also coming off a bye.

To be at 7-4, and almost through this incredibly tough run with the premiership ladder suggesting easier matches against Carlton (MCG), St Kilda (Adelaide) and Fremantle (Optus) looming, the Power are travelling nicely on the road to a top-four, perhaps top-two finish.

In fact, after the Melbourne game Port play only two of the other top-eight sides in their remaining nine home-and-away matches – West Coast (home) and Collingwood (MCG). Also, seven of Port's remaining games are at Adelaide Oval.