Port Adelaide’s recent form: lost to Fremantle by 28, beat Adelaide by 12, lost to North Melbourne by two, lost to Western Bulldogs by 54 and lost to Richmond by four.

Recent results against St Kilda:

Round six, 2008, Port Adelaide 12.10 (82) d St Kilda 9.7 (61), AAMI
Round five, 2007, Port Adelaide 14.12 (96) d St Kilda 6.7 (43), AAMI
Round 16, 2006, St Kilda 8.16 (64) d Port Adelaide 8.12 (60), Aurora
Round four, 2006, Port Adelaide 19.8 (122) d St Kilda 18.10 (118), AAMI
Round 11, 2005, Port Adelaide 16.8 (104) d St Kilda 11.15 (81), Aurora

Strengths:

Port Adelaide outscored Fremantle for three quarters last week and, if not for a shell-shocked display in the wind-affected opening term, the final result could’ve been very different.

The Power showed heart, recovering from six goals down to steal back the lead in the third term, but another costly lapse ended in a frustrating loss.

The Saints, too, have taken their fans on a rollercoaster ride this season, toppling finals fancies Hawthorn, North Melbourne and the Sydney Swans before throwing away a 26-point lead to go down to the hapless West Coast.

Few teams are capable of playing four quarters of full-on footy, but the side that sticks at it the longest will walk away with the points on Sunday.

Potential weakness:

The Power are taking a glass-half-full approach to their mounting injury list, preferring to focus on the opportunities young players will be given rather than the hundreds of games' experience sitting on the sidelines.

Names like Paul Stewart, Adam Cockshell, Ryan Williams and first-year players Mitch Farmer and Matthew Westhoff will feature over the next five weeks, but with youngsters playing alongside other youngsters, it will make the going tough for Port Adelaide.

They’re sweating on:

Superstar Nick Riewoldt has been the instigator in St Kilda’s late season charge, averaging 20 possessions, 11 marks and four goals in each of his last three games. The Saints skipper booted three majors against Port Adelaide at a rain soaked AAMI Stadium in round six and in perfect goal kicking conditions inside the Telstra Dome this week the Power will need to curtail his influence.

Young defender Chaplin has done the job on the dual All-Australian in the past, but could miss this week with an ankle sprain, leaving coach Mark Williams with a big decision to make.

Williams conceded Toby Thurstans was a little rusty in his first game back, while the super quick Michael Pettigrew has the athleticism, but maybe not the frame.
Impressive Fijian Alipate Carlile is likely to remain on the last line opposed to Justin Koschitzke, so Damon White, who is on the comeback from a hamstring strain, could be the smoky to return with the Riewoldt assignment.

Dangermen:

Justin Westhoff: the promising young forward delivered his best return of the season last week with four goals, seven marks and two scoring assists. Westhoff, who is rated second in the forward line for defensive effort, also laid two tackles and created a strong presence in attack. The 32-gamer is likely to be a greater focal point up forward in the absence of skipper Warren Tredrea and it will be interesting to see just how the Power use him.

Shaun Burgoyne: Burgoyne has become the Steven Bradbury of captains this week with skipper Tredrea (shoulder), Chad Cornes (numerous), Brendon Lade (omitted) and Michael Wilson (knee) all missing from the Port Adelaide side. Williams has challenged his ‘middle-aged’ players to demonstrate greater leadership in the remaining five rounds and with Tredders expected to retire in coming years this could be an audition for the younger Burgoyne.

Kane Cornes: Cornes, without doubt, is only five weeks away from receiving a second-consecutive John Cahill Medal as Port Adelaide’s best and fairest. The All-Australian continued his fine form last week with a whopping 39 possessions, six clearances and six tackles and is likely to have the job on Nick Dal Santo, Lenny Hayes, Leigh Montagna or Luke Ball this week. Cornes, who is also a member of the Power leadership group, will be looking to stand tall in the absence of his brother and the club’s other figureheads.


It’s not generally known…
These two sides have met at the Telstra Dome just three times in the AFL, with the ledger in Port Adelaide’s favour – two wins to one.

The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the club.