Port Adelaide defender Ryan Burton is likely to return from injury as his club puts the collective blinkers on in the race to the AFL finals.
Burton has missed the past four games because of a hamstring injury but is in the selection frame for Port’s away match against North Melbourne on Saturday night.
“He had a great training week last week so it suggests he’ll launch himself into this week with no hurdles …I would expect he would play,” Power assistant coach Brett Montgomery told reporters on Monday.
Asked if Burton would likely return via the state league, Montgomery said: “No, I don’t think so.
“Let’s just see how he gets through the week … he’s certainly going to give us an interesting conversation come match committee but I expect him to play (AFL).”
But ruck recruit Scott Lycett faces another game in the state league, given the solid form of his replacement Peter Ladhams in tandem with Paddy Ryder in Saturday’s win against Sydney.
“We’re really happy with what Pete is doing in the ruck at the moment … he has added a different dimension to our game,” Montgomery said.
“Selection is not obviously until later in the week (but) I can’t see us making a change in that space.
“But that’s not to say we won’t talk at lengths about it and push a case for someone like Scotty getting in.”
The Power, after consecutive wins, hold eighth spot by percentage from Adelaide and the Western Bulldogs with two games remaining before the finals.
Montgomery said Port would focus purely on winning their remaining matches rather than worry about what their rivals for the finals-bound ladder spot were doing.
“I’m not sure we look too closely at how everyone else is going … we have got our own stuff to worry about,” he said.
“Our style has been pretty solid all year. We’re just really starting to come to terms with how much risk we need to take and what areas of the ground we need to strengthen up.
“So it’s all eyes on us at the moment from a coaching point of view and not too much else.”