THE OPENING minutes of Saturday night's vital clash against Fremantle could decide whether Port Adelaide play finals, says coach Ken Hinkley.
If the Power beat the Dockers they will lock in their place in the eight, regardless of whether Carlton beats Essendon the same night.
Hinkley said the match would be defined by its opening term and that if his side fired early and made the most of its chances, an upset victory was achievable.
"It's about the first quarter probably, at the end of the day it's going to be about how we perform in the first few minutes and stay in the contest as long as we possibly can," Hinkley said.
"Against them you're going to find a time when they're dominating and there's probably going to be a time when we get our turn with the ball too.
"We've just got to make sure we make the most of those opportunities."
If the Power lose on Saturday night and Carlton defeats the Bombers, the round 23 game between Port and the Blues becomes sudden death.
With the Power huge underdogs against the Dockers, it looms the likely scenario.
A punishing road trip to Perth can sometimes affect teams the following week, but Hinkley denied he would take things easy on Saturday if the game got away from his side.
"We travelled in round one [to Melbourne], that was as big of a concern to me at that stage as is going to Freo," he said.
"There's a bit on the line for us every week we play and this is no different.
"We'll be about playing until the final siren and giving ourselves the chance to be in the game as long as we possibly can."
Having been robbed of the services of Hamish Hartlett (suspension) and Cameron Hitchcok (hamstring injuries), Kane Mitchell, Sam Colquhoun and Jake Neade can replenish the side's lost run.
Hinkley was furious at the Match Review Panel's decision to suspend Hartlett for two weeks for his high hit on young Gold Coast player Seb Tape last weekend.
Hinkley made it clear that had Hartlett not risked missing the club's first final by challenging the suspension, the Power would not have let it stick without a fight.
"I thought everything Hamish did was inside the rules," he said.
"The clear evidence showed that Hamish made head contact and we know what happened in the early part of the season [and] how that was ruled upon (accidental).
"We thought Hamish was very similar … at another point in the year we would have challenged that with everything we had."
