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Power staying real about AFL season start

Roar Guru
3rd May, 2013
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Port Adelaide’s best start to an AFL season won’t mean a campaign without pain, caretaker coach Alan Richardson has warned.

Taking the reins while head coach Ken Hinkley recuperates from a virus that prevented him flying to Hobart for Saturday’s clash with North Melbourne, Richardson says a 5-0 start has changed nothing about Port’s rebuilding program.

“We’re building a team, we’re a really young footy team, there’s new coaching (staff),” Richardson told reporters at Bellerive on Friday.

“We think we’re heading in the right direction, absolutely.

“There’s going to be some ups and there’s going to be some downs.

“Basically we’re really pleased with where they’re going at the minute.”

The Power finished 14th in 2012 with just five wins amidst concerns about the club’s financial viability.

They sacked coach Matthew Primus mid-season before bringing Hinkley and long-time AFL assistant coach Richardson on board.

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Now Port have emerged as early-season surprise packets in 2013, although three of their wins have come against strugglers Melbourne, GWS and Gold Coast.

Richardson said the club’s early season form had lifted the playing group’s self-belief.

“The guys are certainly getting some confidence, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.

“Probably our two best results have been against Adelaide and West Coast, teams that certainly coming into the season were highly regarded.”

The Power face an early-season litmus test of their credentials as possible finalists against North Melbourne at Bellerive on Saturday.

Already punters are queuing up to back them hitting their first hurdle, installing them rank outsiders against a Kangaroos side that is 1-4.

Richardson said finals football had not been part of the thinking as he and Hinkley set about resurrecting the club, and that had not changed.

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“We understand where we’re at in terms of our age demographic,” he said.

“We need to continue to play really good sustainable footy and then, depending on when it is that mathematically we’re a real chance, that’s when we’ll potentially start talking about it.

“Right now it’s about attack on the ball, attack on the man, using the footy well, team defence.”

The Former Collingwood defender faces his own test when he steps into the top job at Bellerive after previous stints as assistant at Carlton, Essendon, the Magpies and the Western Bulldogs.

His last head coaching job was at VFL club Coburg in 2002 but he expects his boss to let him get on with the job on Saturday.

“He’s going to be sitting down as a senior coach watching it on telly,” Richardson said.

“I can’t imagine how hard that would be.

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“I’m sure if he felt strongly enough to give us some input he would send through some sort of message.”

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