There's been a lot of talk about what it takes to build a final four playing list and Port Adelaide with it's vast improvement from a virtual basket case two years ago to a preliminary finalist next weekend is worth looking at.

The following is the list of the Port players from the team that beat Freo and where they were originally drafted when they first came into the system:-

ND 4 ~ Hartlett

ND 5 ~ Boak

ND 5 ~ Polec

ND 6 ~ Wingard

ND 7 ~ Wines

ND 9 ~ Moore

ND 12 ~ Monfries

ND 12 ~ Schultz

ND 13 ~ Ebert

ND 16 ~ Lobbe

ND 16 ~ Pittard

ND 20 ~ Cornes

ND 22 ~ Trengove

ND 38 ~ Broadbent

ND 44 ~ Carlisle

ND 52 ~ O'Shea

ND 55 ~ Gray

ND 71 ~ Westhoff

GWS 17 year old selection ~ Hombsch

GWS NT zone selection ~ Neade

PSD 5 ~ White

RD 16 ~ Jonas

Interestingly, no top three draft selections but plenty of first rounders. Many of them were around two years ago when Port was struggling under Primus so their development under coach Ken Hinkley and performance manager Darren Burgess since they came to the club has been outstanding.

I am sure we could line up just as many first round picks as that over the past few years

Astute drafting and trading. They don't seem in the slightest bit daunted by the age of their list either, unlike us.

Add in the Burgess factor and they seem to have all pieces of the pie (maybe not the financial slice, just yet)

I am sure we could line up just as many first round picks as that over the past few years

yes but 90% of them are are no longer at the club or are VFL standard.

GAME PLAN !!!!! ATTACK & RUN

Ken Hinkley says its all about the basics and getting it right on the day.

Does our "Defend and Chip" fit into that

Does our "Defend and Chip" fit into that

well, we can almost certainly take the Chip out of the equation.

Monfries, Schulz and Ebert have all been pretty important pick ups for them. And all at unders as well. Came in from other clubs where they were on the outer and probably help provide a bit of a lift to the place where many of the others were pretty down and out.

Unfortunately I think that shows the advantage WA and SA clubs have with recruiting guys who are open to fresh starts back home.

Game plans I think are a bit underrated. Good footy is good footy whether you attack or defend. The best Ross Lyon teams could all score easily, just when they played top class opposition the games become a close struggle.

What Hinkley does is teach the fundamentals of footy well regardless of the attacking game plan. Port tackle, they defend as a team, they put their bodies on the line etc.

There was a patch of form in the middle of the year when we really looked like doing those kind of things under Roos. So let's be positive.

Biggest difference between us and them?
All their top draft picks have made their prelim final team. Literally all of them.

Lets hope Roosy and co. can work their wonders like last off season and right the wrongs of the past.

Astute drafting and trading. They don't seem in the slightest bit daunted by the age of their list either, unlike us.

I can't recall a single instance in the past couple of years where anyone from their club has used age or games experience as an excuse. By contrast, you couldn't go a couple of weeks without Neeld mentioning it.

From the outset, Hinkley has been a man of no excuses, and it has paid dividends. Roos is heading in that direction, but the mantra of "we're a bottom club" still seems to remain ever present.

Gray and Westoff real steals at #55 and #71 respectively.

Robbie Gray at pick 55 is ridiculous.

GAME PLAN !!!!! ATTACK & RUN

Ken Hinkley says its all about the basics and getting it right on the day.

The Bailey game plan can work with the right cattle? Who is Port's recruiter, he knows what he is doing.

The Bailey game plan can work with the right cattle? Who is Port's recruiter, he knows what he is doing.

You need to look at their defensive plan as well, it's not all attack. If it was Freo would have done them by over 100 points on the weekend. Their defence stood up against a lot of pressure in the first half.

GAME PLAN !!!!! ATTACK & RUN

Ken Hinkley says its all about the basics and getting it right on the day.

The problem with that gameplan is, as Melbourne showed in *almost* beating them twice, is that they have no plan B.

A team with an aggressive offensive plan needs a similarly aggressive defensive plan. Whenever Port was challenged defensively this year, they struggled. The way to beat them is to slow the game down and turn it into a slog. It's not rocket science.

You can try and beat them at their own game but they'll out-run you.

The Kanga want to run with Sydney this weekend and have a scoring fest. Imo, as Richmond showed, if you can zone the ground well enough and stem the run, you can beat a team like Sydney.

Port stood up defensively on the weekend and the right time. They'll need to do it again against Hawthorn.

Edited September 15, 201411 yr by praha

Monfries, Schulz and Ebert have all been pretty important pick ups for them. And all at unders as well. Came in from other clubs where they were on the outer and probably help provide a bit of a lift to the place where many of the others were pretty down and out.

Unfortunately I think that shows the advantage WA and SA clubs have with recruiting guys who are open to fresh starts back home.

Game plans I think are a bit underrated. Good footy is good footy whether you attack or defend. The best Ross Lyon teams could all score easily, just when they played top class opposition the games become a close struggle.

What Hinkley does is teach the fundamentals of footy well regardless of the attacking game plan. Port tackle, they defend as a team, they put their bodies on the line etc.

There was a patch of form in the middle of the year when we really looked like doing those kind of things under Roos. So let's be positive.

You could probably add Polec to that, once arriving at Port he just hit his straps, from nowhere!

You could probably add Polec to that, once arriving at Port he just hit his straps, from nowhere!

Added a lot of muscle to his frame too almost immediately.

I would also be looking very closely at PAs fitness program. They are doing something very right in this area.

Draft well.

Develop fitness.

Develop skills.

Clearly articulate core playing structures.

Effectively practice those structures.

Build respect and trust within the whole group.

Ta da!

The actual process for becoming a highly competitive football team is not 'complicated', it just requires thousands upon thousands of small decisions made by dozens of people, day in, day out. On that count, maybe the bottom item on that list that is most important one.

Draft well.

Develop fitness.

Develop skills.

Clearly articulate core playing structures.

Effectively practice those structures.

Build respect and trust within the whole group.

Ta da!

The actual process for becoming a highly competitive football team is not 'complicated', it just requires thousands upon thousands of small decisions made by dozens of people, day in, day out. On that count, maybe the bottom item on that list that is most important one.

You left out:

- shamelessly rip off the Enlgish Premier League with a pre-match rendition of a pop song

If we're going to copy them, we need to do it to the letter.

You left out:

- shamelessly rip off the Enlgish Premier League with a pre-match rendition of a pop song

If we're going to copy them, we need to do it to the letter.

Ours would be Greenday's Time of your Life, but instead of holding up scarves we would be softly weeping into our hands.

Ours would be Greenday's Time of your Life, but instead of holding up scarves we would be softly weeping into our hands.

I vote 'bound for glory', would love to hear that every time we roll out.

Faith No More - 'Last Cup of Sorrow'

Has a little resonance to where we need to get to, as a club.

Emerging from grief, full of rage, determined to start again and to honor those not with us anymore.

But not in some stupid pre-game circle-jerk. We'll leave that to Port, I hope.

Draft well.

Develop fitness.

Develop skills.

Clearly articulate core playing structures.

Effectively practice those structures.

Build respect and trust within the whole group.

Ta da!

The actual process for becoming a highly competitive football team is not 'complicated', it just requires thousands upon thousands of small decisions made by dozens of people, day in, day out. On that count, maybe the bottom item on that list that is most important one.

Ta da! Is certainly most important. HopeRoos has it from the start of training

There's been a lot of talk about what it takes to build a final four playing list and Port Adelaide with it's vast improvement from a virtual basket case two years ago to a preliminary finalist next weekend is worth looking at.

The following is the list of the Port players from the team that beat Freo and where they were originally drafted when they first came into the system:-

..........

Interestingly, no top three draft selections but plenty of first rounders. Many of them were around two years ago when Port was struggling under Primus so their development under coach Ken Hinkley and performance manager Darren Burgess since they came to the club has been outstanding.

I got to wondering how long it took them to get that list together

The first column is the year they first played with Port. Second column is their draft year

Pick & Player First at Port Draft

ND 20 ~ Cornes 2001 2000

ND 44 ~ Carlisle 2006 2005

ND 5 ~ Boak 2007 2006

ND 55 ~ Gray 2007 2006

ND 71 ~ Westhoff 2007 2006

ND 4 ~ Hartlett 2009 2008

ND 38 ~ Broadbent 2009 2008

ND 9 ~ Moore 2010 2009

ND 12 ~ Schultz 2010 2002

ND 16 ~ Lobbe 2010 2007

ND 22 ~ Trengove 2010 2008

ND 16 ~ Pittard 2011 2009

ND 52 ~ O'Shea 2011 2010

RD 16 ~ Jonas 2011 2011

ND 6 ~ Wingard 2012 2011

ND 13 ~ Ebert 2012 2007

ND 7 ~ Wines 2013 2012

ND 12 ~ Monfries 2013 2004

GWS 17 year old selection ~ Hombsch 2013 2012

GWS NT zone selection ~ Neade 2013 2012

ND 5 ~ Polec 2014 2010

PSD 5 ~ White 2014 2006

Significant losses (excluding retirements) include Chaplin & Pearce and tragically John McCarthy

Hinkley and Burgess had a fair bit to work with when they came on board

Apologies for horrid formatting

Ours would be Greenday's Time of your Life, but instead of holding up scarves we would be softly weeping into our hands.

I'm pretty sure "Wake Me Up When September Ends" would be a more fitting song for us.