POWER players struggled to hear each other during Saturday night's thrilling win against Hawthorn in front of a record crowd at Adelaide Oval, says Ollie Wines.
Wines said he was thankful for the immense support offered by the 52,233-strong crowd – an AFL-era record in South Australia – but he said he couldn't hear his teammates at all.
With its large, domed grandstand roofs, Adelaide Oval has quickly been labelled one of the loudest stadiums in Australia - twice this year, players have been unable to hear the loudest sirens in the country.
Wines said Hawthorn's pressure was incredible on Saturday night, which was reflected by a one-sided stats sheet that showed
the Power were found wanting in nearly every key performance indicator despite their 14-point win.
But Wines also said an inability to hear each other made life tough.
"[Their pressure] played a bit of havoc, also probably the atmosphere – how good it was probably flustered us a little bit," Wines said.
"[The crowd's] support does enormous amounts for us but just the noise, it can be hard at times to talk to your teammates and … communicate our structures and everything.
'Under those conditions you can't always talk, so you've got to direct and understand where your fellow teammates are going to go.
"I think we're really good at that, but probably [against Hawthorn] was the first time we've really been put to the sword on it."
While the crowd noise proved difficult to counter, Wines said it was simply an aspect of the game the Power would have to master.
The Power are closing in on securing a home final, a prospect that would undoubtedly raise the crowd's enthusiasm further at Adelaide Oval.
Wines said the club had no option but to embrace it and hope to thrive on it.
"It's something we’ve got to learn to live with, we love playing in front of big crowds," he said.
"Having that atmosphere in the ground is really special and that's what finals are like … it's something that you've got to learn to play in front of if you want to be really good in September.
"I think it'll hold us in really good stead … hopefully we can keep improving under that duress."
The Power will look to further strengthen their position at the top of the AFL ladder on Saturday in Alice Springs when they take on Melbourne.
Wines warned the Demons were no longer easy-beats, as Richmond found out in round nine.
Just as the Power experienced rejuvenation last year in Ken Hinkley's first as senior coach, Wines said Melbourne had taken a giant step forward under coach Paul Roos.
"They're always in their games and we definitely won't be taking them likely … Ken's very demanding each week," he said.
"Melbourne's an improved team, a bit like us last year."
