Pop quiz, folks.
What makes a good rivalry?
Is it:
A - Sharing close geographic proximity?
B - A clear and played-up socio-economic difference between fanbases?
C - Players and, to an even more egregious sense, fans changing teams?
D - Suspect acts, taking place on either side of the boundary?
E - All of the above?
If you locked E, I'm tipping you're from the City of Churches.
But what makes aย great rivalry? Well, that happens when every element is sent into hyperdrive every single time the two times face off, giving every game added significance.
Case in point? Every single Showdown. Ever.
Since joining the AFL - belatedly, depending on who you ask - ahead of the 1997 season, Port Adelaide and their older, more hoity-toity, brother, Adelaide, have shown up for 53 Showdowns, recording an almost identical ledger- the Power hold a narrow lead of 27 wins to the Crows' 26.
In a testament to the nail-biting nature of these bi-annual battles, 19 of these fixtures - or 35.9 per cent - have been decided by two goals or less.
Before Matthew Nicks' murder and Ken Hinkley's charges run out for Showdown LIV on Saturday night, let's look back at the matches and moments that made this the league's best rivalry.
Round 4, 1997
While these two clubs have beef that dates back to the early 90s, Adelaide and Port Adelaide would meet for the first time at AFL level a month into the 1997 season.
After losing their opening clashes against Collingwood and Essendon, Port would open their AFL account in Round 3, knocking off Geelong by 39 points before a crowd of 32,074 at Football Park.
A week later, John Cahill's charges would return to West Lakes to do battle with Malcolm Blight's murder, this time before more than 47,000 parochial South Australians.
While Blight's men would go on to win the club's first flag that September, the men from Alberton would take bragging rights that Sunday afternoon, holding off the fast-finishing Crows by 11 points by the final siren.
Winning the game and cashing novelty cheque for 20K? It doesn't get much better than that.
Round 5, 2002
Every rivalry needs spice, even if it's added away from the playing field.
While Port would win the typically tight contest by eight points on the Saturday night, the Crows, led by the Waikere Warrior Mark Ricciuto would, quite literally, win the fight.
Located just back from the shore of Henley Beach, the Ramsgate Hotel is a popular watering hole to the city's west. It is also the scene of the only Showdown without umpires.
The afternoon after Mark Williams' men took bragging rights on the field, the players congregated for a rehab session over the drip tray. The problem? A string of Crows players were already in the pub.
Boys, booze, bravado and bruised egos, you don't have to be a Mensa candidate to work out how this went down.
Perennial Port pest, and current assistant coach, Josh Carr may have held Riccuito to just six kicks in his side's win the night before, but by the time the sun would set on the Sunday, Carr had allegedly been sent across the bonnet off a car after the scuffle took the pair from the front bar to the pavement.
Though both sets of playing groups would be dressed down by their respective clubs, the mere fact that more than 50,000 fans turned out for the next pair of Showdowns proved that going the knuckle is a legitimate form of guerilla marketing in South Australia.
Semi Final, 2005
Players from either side of Port Road have often stated that Showdowns always feel like a final.
The keys to the city are up for grabs, after all.
But while bragging rights are on offer those two times a year the city hits fever pitch, believe it or not, these bitter rivals have only met in September once.
While the vast majority of matches on this shortlist were nailbiters, 'The Ultimate Showdown' was anything but, as Adelaide slammed on 18 goals to five to end Port's shot at back-to-back flags with an 83-point win - a record margin between the two clubs.
Not going down without a fight, Power wrecking ball Byron Pickett took a scalp back to Alberton with him, levelling Crows big man Rhett Biglands with a crude bump on Footy Park's outer wing.
Although it's no 119-point crushing on the last Saturday in September, raise this particular defeat with any Port fan worth their salt and you'll only be pouring Mitani into still-open wounds.
Round 3, 2008
Biffs, bumps, comebacks and trainers on their backs, this Showdown XXIV had the lot.
After both sides made the September action the season prior, expectations were high at Alberton just as they were at West Lakes.
Yet after dropping their opening two games after being blown out of the water in the 2007 grand final, Port needed a spark to set their season in motion, and it came in the form of the tallest man on the list.
Those at Football Park on Sunday, April 6 2008 are sure to remember the reverberations that shook the rafters when Dean Brogan levelled Luke Jericho with a bump that would dominate conversation these days.
The 45,524 in attendance will also recall Nathan Basset, Ken McGregor and Mr. Yuletide himself, Kris Massie, joining Jericho in exiting the clash early, leaving Neil Craig with no bench players at his disposal.
Still, when all was said and done, it was a young Richard Douglas, in just his 19th game, proving the difference, slotting three crucial goals to guide the Crows off the canvas to glory by just six points.
Round 3, 2013
By the time Taylor Walker split the sticks for third goal of the night, it had got late early for the Power.
31 points down, 13 minutes already gone in the third term and without a goal of their own in almost a quarter.
Sometimes it takes a piece of individual brilliance to kickstart a comeback, while in others, it takes a collective effort to take home the chocolates.
With 11 of the last 15 goals of the game, including four from Justin Westhoff and a trifecta off the boot of Chad Wingard, the Alberton crowd roared back for a nine-point win to leave the Pride of South Australia ruing what might have been.
Given a win would have seen the Crows play a home final that September, the sting would last beyond the bounds of April.
Round 19, 2013
Sometimes the sequel can match the original.
In another back-and-forth game that saw Port cap a multi-goal comeback at the death. Chad Wingard would again act as the hero, slotting his fifth goal with less than a minute to go to deliver the Power a three-point win.
Though the current Hawk would depart Football Park with the Showdown Medal that evening, the game will long be remembered for Angus Monfries channelling Shane Warne deep in time on.
Round 16, 2015
While ill-feeling sits at the heart of this rivalry, it was shared sorrow that acted as the tie to bind this night.
Having served as an assistant at Port Adelaide for a decade before taking the Crows' reins ahead of the 2015 season, Phil Walsh was a familiar face in the halls of Alberton and West Lakes.
Just two weeks after his tragic murder, these warring tribes called a ceasefire to pay respect to Walsh, a mate of many in the City of Churches.
Though the on-field action has become an afterthought in the years since, Port almost pulled off another five-goal comeback, eventually falling short by three points to Walsh's men.
Round 8, 2018
The tables were turned, if only for a moment, this night, with Port coughing up a near-three-goal lead late in the game as Eddie Betts Taylor Walker and Mitch McGovern combined to put the Crows ahead with less than a minute to play.
Enter Steven Motlop.
In his first Showdown since trading Kardinia Park for Brougham Place, Motlop had spurned a pair of chances during the first and third terms to slot his first goal in Port colours.
And while the Northern Territorian would never win the ultimate prize with the Power, let alone any individual awards, Motlop will long be remembered for his winner at the death that sent the teal half of South Australia into raptures.
Round 20, 2018
Revenge, they've always said, is a dish best served cold. And while it always looked as though butter would never melt in Josh Jenkins' mouth, the forward served Port a pie floater straight from the deep freeze.
Mere months after Motlop's heroics, the Crows would come from behind at the final break to eventually take victory by three points, thanks to a Jenkins snap with only minutes left on the clock.
Only was it a goal?
Well, when they asked him, the former Crow was pretty happy to break a few more teal hearts.
"My grandma raised me not to tell fibs. I think it hit the post but I'm pretty happy that they didn't think so," Jenkins would say post-game.
Close and controversial? An instant Showdown classic.
Round 3, 2022
Late winners are nothing new to the Showdown mix, however, impossible shots from after the siren were yet to feature in scripts penned prior to April of 2022.
With Port hosting a preliminary final the year prior and the Crows finishing way down in 15th, few gave Matthew Nicks' youngsters much of a sniff in this one.
Yet with new Crow Jordan Dawson in tow, the outsiders gave themselves a sniff, staying within touching distance at each of the breaks.
And though Port's lead would stretch out to 18 points after Martin Frederick griddied his way to goal eight minutes into the final term, the baby Crows would not wilt, with Lachlan Scholl and Elliott Himmelberg combining to slam three on before the final bell.
But while brows were furrowed and the sweats were up in the Power box, it would take a sublime set shot from Dawson to short their circuit after the siren, making the boy from Kingston South End an instant fan favourite.
