THE Demons walked off AAMI Stadium looking disheartened after being humiliated by struggling Port Adelaide yesterday, and coach Dean Bailey didn't shy from the fact it was a disappointing effort.

He said he felt for the loyal fans who had stood by Melbourne though an incredibly tough year, and just when it was expected to do well, following up its winning performance against West Coast, the team had let everyone down badly, losing by 78 points — 39 scoring shots to 16.

"They have stuck by us," Bailey said of the fans. "They are very proud and very passionate supporters and members, and they will be really hurting from the effort today. We didn't deliver for two hours.

"We are a young group, but there are no excuses. We still expect a young player to go out there and play with vigour and some real aggression. We were fortunate not to have been beaten by more.

Bailey described the effort as being among the Demons' worst of the year.

"It was really poor. Not competitive enough for long enough. That would be in a top-three-or-four really poor efforts, I would have thought, for the whole year.

"We just did not look in the game. We prepared well. We missed tackles every time we turned the ball over, we could not hit a target with our skill, we were flat-footed, and it really showed on the scoreboard and they should have kicked more."

One now has to ask just how much has Melbourne learned this season — it's year of development. Bailey likes to believe there have been positives, but few shone out yesterday. And for the first half, Port wasn't that much better with its ball handling errors and turnovers.

A slight touch of irony to come out of this was that ruckman Jeff White — on whose future Bailey said a decision was expected to be made within days — was one of Melbourne's few good players, while Adem Yze, another whose future is under a cloud, also had his valuable moments.

The efforts by other seasoned campaigners Daniel Bell and Matthew Whelan were most impressive, and 20-year-old Colin Garland, playing just his 18th game, was brilliant, but go down the list that is being "re-built" and on the day there was little to be enthused about.

It would have been different had Melbourne been blown away by Geelong or Hawthorn, but this was also a struggling side that has been been along a rough path and has tried new players.

Among Port's newcomers yesterday was Marlon Motlop, cousin of Daniel, and while the kid did OK in his first game, it was the older-hand who took centre stage for the family from Darwin with five goals.

This game was as much about kids impressing for next year as it was senior campaigners trying to stay on the list, especially Peter Burgoyne and Brendon Lade. Burgoyne, who had been struggling at half-back, was thrown onto the ball by coach Mark Williams and answered the challenge admirably. Lade showed glimpses of his old self, and snared two goals.

Williams has also felt the heat this season, and the victory allowed him to reinforce the match committee's decision to experiment with its player mix as the curtain came down on Port's finals hopes.

"We haven't lost focus, desire or the courage if you like, to actually pick the sides we said we were going to pick and play with a little bit of experimentation," Williams said. "It mightn't suit the agendas of many, but it certainly suits our agenda."

Port had lost nine of its previous 10 games, and in the bigger picture, including attendances and memberships, Williams agreed that it was it was crucial to beat the bottom side. The fans were obviously not confident as the attendance was only 18,875 — its second-lowest home attendance in the history of the club. Melbourne's challenge to keep the faith this week to end a heart-wrenching season is now even greater.

PORT ADELAIDE 6.6 9.10 10.17 18.21 (129)
MELBOURNE 1.1 2.4 4.8 7.9 (51)

GOALS Port Adelaide: D Motlop 5, Lade 2, P Burgoyne 2, Pearce 2, J Westhoff 2, M Westhoff 2, Rodan, Cassisi, Boak. Melbourne: Miller 2, Bate, Bruce, Wonaeamirri, Jamar, Newton.

BEST Port Adelaide: Cassisi, P Burgoyne, D Motlop, K Cornes, Boak, Logan. Melbourne: Bell, Whelan, Buckley, Wheatley, Morton, Sylvia.

UMPIRES Margetts, Head, Keating.

CROWD 18,875 at AAMI Stadium.

THE UPSHOT Port hauled itself from 14th to 13th with a big win, but for most part it still played like a lowly-ranked side. There was no threat of Melbourne hauling itself off the bottom.

TALKING POINT It has been a season of development for Melbourne, but on yesterday's performance one may ask what has it learned.

HOT AND COLD The "old warhorses" Brendon Lade and Jeff White are said to be on their way out to pasture, but the ruckmen ran hot at times and showed they still have something to offer.