PORT Adelaide has paved the way for a busy draft period, making a total of 12 changes to its senior and rookie lists.

On Thursday, the Power, who made just four changes to their primary list last year, informed Damon White, Nathan Lonie, Fabian Deluca, Greg Bentley, Ryan Williams and Adam Cockshell that they would not be receiving contracts for 2009.

White, 25, played 55 games in seven years with Port Adelaide including just six this year. The hard-running West Australian was tried at centre-half back over the pre-season, but, arguably, his best game came as a forward with three goals against Carlton in round 19.

Lonie, 25, finally chalked up his 100-game milestone in round 15 after being stuck on 98 for close to a year, but couldn’t cement himself as a regular in the side.

The former Hawk joins twin brother and Collingwood defender Ryan, who recently announced his retirement, in leaving an AFL club this year.

Bentley, 21, played 21 games for the Power after being elevated from the rookie list in 2006, while Deluca, Cockshell and Williams played only a handful of AFL games combined.

Port Adelaide, who also traded Adam Thomson to Richmond (in exchange for pick 42) and lost much-loved veteran Michael Wilson and injury-stricken ruckman Hugh Minson to retirement, will now have nine available picks (4, 22, 38, 42, 54, 70, 86, 102 and 118) in the November 29 NAB AFL Draft.

However, the club is likely to save at least one pick for the NAB AFL pre-season draft, to be held on December 16, where it will endeavour to secure the services of premiership star and former Fremantle midfielder Josh Carr.

Football operations manager Peter Rohde said the perceived depth of the upcoming national draft and the impending introduction of the Gold Coast team had forced the Power to make some tough decisions.

“This is one of the hardest times of the football year, but we also understand the opportunity exists to take advantage of what’s considered by many as the deepest draft of recent times,” Rohde said.

“Our national recruiting manager Blair Hartley has been working very hard to identify the best talent and we see this as a real opportunity to inject even more quality youth into an already young and developing squad.”

The Power also opted not to retain rookies Ryan Willits, Gavin Grose and Daniel Boyle, while forward Nick Salter, who was elevated late in the season, is likely to be upgraded when the younger players begin pre-season training next Thursday.