Coach Ken Hinkley is adamant: Port Adelaide won’t be easy road kill in their return to the AFL finals.
Port next weekend will play a final for the first time in six seasons – an elimination bout against Richmond or Collingwood, at the MCG.
“It will be a great experience for us as a football club, to go there and, for the first time in a long time, get a taste of finals football,” Hinkley said after Port were beaten by one point by Carlton on Saturday.
“Hopefully we go in there and make an impact.
“That is what we’re hoping to do. You just don’t want to go in and say ‘this is a great experience for us’. You want to go in there and make an impact.
“This group of players is pretty desperate and they’ll be keen to put on a good show.”
Port will summon three key players who missed the loss to the Blues – Robbie Gray will return from a thigh strain, defender Alipate Carlile from a back ailment and midfielder Hamish Hartlett from suspension.
And Hinkley said there was no chance of his young squad being fatigued entering the club’s first finals match since its 2007 grand final loss.
“They get an incredible boost of energy because it’s the most exciting part of the year,” he said.
“You just know that finals does give you a lift … you just get a charge of energy.”