<p>Round 16 kicks off at the Adelaide Oval with Port Adelaide hosting Carlton.&nbsp;</p> <p>It’s another ‘blockbuster’ by the fixture team on a Thursday night, with 10th and 12th going head-to-head. You would think that the stakes would be high and the loser of this game would be highly consequential, but given how this season is unfolding… There might not be much to gain for the winner other than false hope.&nbsp;</p> <p>Where do you even start with the Blues?</p> <p>Once again, they brought the media inferno and ridicule of the footy world upon themselves with their latest dreadful performance last Saturday at the MCG. Losing to the Roos was one thing—they are an improving team and deserve credit—but, my God, there were moments when Carlton looked like schoolboys who didn’t know what to do with themselves.&nbsp;</p> <p>They let themselves get bullied on the field, and now everyone is in the hot seat, particularly senior coach Michael Voss, who is once again fighting to save his coaching career.&nbsp;</p> <p>At least for the Blues, they can’t dwell on the disasterclass for too long, as they have to fly to Adelaide to play another game five days later. For Voss, facing his old mentor Ken Hinkley and his equally flaky, Jekyll-and-Hyde Port Adelaide team, which lost to the Swans at home last week,&nbsp;</p> <p>It's a crucial match. Both teams sit at 6-8 and are two games outside the top eight.&nbsp;</p> <p>Can Carlton galvanize themselves and get themselves up for what would be an against-the-odds win in enemy territory?</p> <p>Mathematically, hope isn’t lost for the winner, but for the loser, it’s time to take out that black Sharpie and officially rule them out.&nbsp;</p> <p>Coming off a five-day break, there could be some team rotations at selection, but the Power are confident that both Miles Bergman and Jason Horne-Francis will be ready after battling through the loss to the Swans. They also hope that key defender Aliir Aliir will be fit to return.&nbsp;</p> <p>At Carlton, injury issues continue, with Walsh and McKay still ruled out. Key defender Jacob Weitering played through the game against the Roos, despite appearing to suffer a serious ankle injury at one stage, and he is in a race against time to play, opening the door for Lewis Young to come in as a replacement.</p> <p>After such a comprehensive loss with few contributors on the day, there may be some changes at the Blues. Father-son recruit Ben Camporeale is impressing at VFL level and could make his senior debut back in his home state. It all has the makings of a horror movie for the loser of this match.&nbsp;</p> <p>For the latest team news, analysis, odds, and betting tips, check out our Power vs Blues prediction and preview below.&nbsp;</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Port Adelaide vs Carlton Predicted Teams</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Port Adelaide Predicted Team List</h3> <p>B: Brandon Zerk-Thatcher, Esava Ratugolea, Lachie Jones&nbsp;</p> <p>HB: Josh Sinn, Aliir Aliir, Connor Rozee</p> <p>C: Jase Burgoyne, Willem Drew, Miles Bergman</p> <p>HF: Jackson Mead, Jordan Sweet, Willie Rioli</p> <p>F: Sam Powell-Pepper, Mitch Georgiades, Darcy Byrne-Jones</p> <p>Foll: Dante Visentini, Jason Horne-Francis, Zak Butters</p> <p>Int: Joe Richards, Kane Farrell, Mani Liddy, Christian Moraes, Ryan Burton</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Carlton Predicted Team List</h3> <p>B: Nick Haynes, Jacob Weitering, Matt Carroll</p> <p>HB: Adam Saad, Lewis Young, Jack Silvagni</p> <p>C: Ollie Hollands, Patrick Cripps, Jaxon Binns</p> <p>HF: Lachie Fogarty, Mitch McGovern, Orazio Fantasia</p> <p>F: Corey Durdin, Charlie Curnow, Will White</p> <p>Foll: Tom De Koning, Adam Cerra, George Hewett</p> <p>Int: Cooper Lord, Ben Camporeale, Alex Cincotta, Zac Williams, Flynn Young</p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Port Adelaide vs Carlton Prediction &amp; Betting Tips</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Head-to-Head Prediction</h3> <p>The Blues hold sway in the recent head-to-head battles, with three wins from the past five matches.</p> <p>They would be leaning on what happened last year when they went to face Port Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval off a five-day break, but this is a very different Carlton team. And their record at the Adelaide Oval is still atrocious, with only three wins from 11 matches, with only one coming against a South Australian team.</p> <p>The Power have played the year in a state of flux ever since they announced their intentions for a coaching handover at the end of the season. Their profile to this point reflects that—a bottom-six team on offence and a bottom-six team on defence.&nbsp;</p> <p>The Blues still rank second overall for defence, but after their midfield group could hardly lay a finger on the Roos last week, those numbers give the impression of a false profile.</p> <p>You’d be a brave soul tipping the Blues after last week and the week they’ve had. Coupled with their record at AO, we’re going with the home side here.&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Betting tip:</strong> <a href="https://www.sportsbet.com.au/betting/australian-rules/afl/port-adelaide-v-carlton-9321043">Power</a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>First Goal Prediction</h3> <p>We all know about Carlton’s strength early on in games before stopping to a walk after half time.&nbsp;</p> <p>They’ve won 12 of 14 first quarters this season. In the past couple of weeks, defender-turned-forward Mitch McGovern has rediscovered his goalkicking prowess, scoring eight goals in his past three matches.&nbsp;</p> <p>Returning to the ground where he kicked 67 goals in 48 games for the Crows as a flying forward, we’re looking at him to kick the Blues off again.</p> <p><strong>Betting tip: </strong><a href="https://www.sportsbet.com.au/betting/australian-rules/afl/port-adelaide-v-carlton-9321043">Mitch McGovern</a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h3>Most Disposals Prediction</h3> <p>Power skipper Connor Rozee went back into a midfield role last week after spending the better part of the year off halfback.&nbsp;</p> <p>Averaging 28.8 disposals per game this season, the Power skipper has gotten close a couple of times, but has never notched 30 possessions in a game against the Blues before.&nbsp;</p> <p>We’re backing that to change this weekend.</p> <p><strong>Betting Tip:</strong> <a href="https://www.sportsbet.com.au/betting/australian-rules/afl/port-adelaide-v-carlton-9321043">Connor Rozee 30+ disposals&nbsp;</a></p> <p>&nbsp;</p> <h2>Port Adelaide Power vs Carlton Blues Match Details</h2> <p>&nbsp;</p> <p><strong>Date:</strong> Thursday, June 26, 2025</p> <p><strong>First Bounce:</strong> 7:30 PM AEST</p> <p><strong>Location:</strong> Adelaide Oval, Adelaide</p> <p><strong>How to watch:</strong> Channel 7, Fox Footy/ Kayo Sports</p> <p><br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> &nbsp;</p>