Why are Port so good? Can we learn from them ?

[saintspremiers]

Is it top ten draft picks ?

Is it the coach?

Or is it the new president with a public profile, Cocky?

[plugger66]

Is it top ten draft picks ?

Is it the coach?

Or is it the new president with a public profile, Cocky?

Even though I would like a president with a bit of profile I reckon we can discount him. No idea about the coach but he maybe better than Primus which helps. Good picks help if the coach can coach. Still expect them to not make the 8. Nearly every year we have a bolter who eventually fails to make the 8 but they are still the most improved side at the moment.

[Cairnsman]

Port have got a good start to the season and by their recent standards it looks like they have improved but to put it in perspective you have to have a look at who they have beaten to get a real perspective on how far they will go this season. Ok so they beat Adelaide and WestCoast but so has everyone else and the other teams they have beaten are Melbourne, GCS GWS and GCS. As I say it looks like they have improved but don't think they will make the 8 this year. Are they better than us?

[stevie]

Port have got a good start to the season and by their recent standards it looks like they have improved but to put it in perspective you have to have a look at who they have beaten to get a real perspective on how far they will go this season. Ok so they beat Adelaide and WestCoast but so has everyone else and the other teams they have beaten are Melbourne, GCS GWS and GCS. As I say it looks like they have improved but don't think they will make the 8 this year. Are they better than us?

Yeah, I was thinking this watching them v the Suns. Everything is rosy for them now and some players are getting an easy kick (don't get me wrong, they have been impressive, and they look very fit).

But it's a long season and when they travel to Melbourne to play Dawks or Bummers or whoever, things will be different. Westhoff won't always have blinders and eventually will return to his sooky self.

[WinnersOnly]

Is it top ten draft picks ?

Is it the coach?

Or is it the new president with a public profile, Cocky?

The coach has instilled belief and a load of confidence in the team .... he is a mans man and a great motivator, where as Watters just concedes !

[SENsei]

Ken Hinkley is a star. He gets blokes wanting to run through walls for him. Will be a great coach.

[Munga]

Reminds me of GT, he'll be great for the club changing direction

[SainterK]

The teams they've beaten as pointed out above is the Suns, GWS, Demons and now a struggling West Coast.

Great wins, but I think it will back off just a little in the coming month or so.

[Animal Enclosure]

They've been trawling top 10 picks for the last 6 years & those kids are maturing.

Hinkley has straightened them out & given them some belief. Don't underestimate the McCarthy influence too. Some of those young blokes are just wholely & solely committed to paying tribute to their mate by playing the best footy they can.

[Con Gorozidis]

Port are the real deal
They have been slowly but surely building their list - the old fashioned way. We can definitely learn something from them. there are no quick fixes in re-building.

The reason they have an easy draw is because they did crap in 2012. Just like what the Crows did the year before.

[#1GILL]

Draft picks have definitely helped. Hartlett, Boak, Wingard, Wines have all had tremendous seasons to date and they are the sort of quality we haven't had access to for quite some time. They are are the ones really driving Ports resurgence for mine.

[gringo]

They beat WCE but the rest are pretty ordinary teams. An easy draw on crap opposition has their tails up. WCE are struggling a bit with injury. Positive starts can make you gain momentum with lots of kids.

They have still got some of their old boys unlike the Dees. Cornes etc. all help drag the kids. The coach also challenged them to not take short cuts according to the players. Hartlett and Boak have been looking like players for years and are starting to come good. Westhoff was always likely and guys like Robbie Gray etc are all nice players when going well.

They stuck to a plan and kept working toward it and has come good.

[plugger66]

Had a pretty easy draw but didnt we have GC and GWS in the first 3 games and the Tigers in between. We got one win out of those 3, they have beaten every they played.

[avid]

I noticed at the end of the year before last, when they were REALLY crap, they started to play with some real spirit.
I think they play real desperation fanatic team footy. They're getting a lot out of themselves.
I used to hate them more than any other team. But now I'm quite admiring their effort, and I'm enjoying watching them build a little success and respect.

(I thought we also showed a fraction of that spirit against Sydney . Hopefully I'll enjoy our season too!)

[saintact7]

Remember Saints rejected Ken Hinkley as coach, preferring Watters. Weren't the only ones to reject Hinkley but they should have had inside info on him from when he was assistant to Blight. That probaby cost him.......pity!

[Stillwaiting]

Hinckley is a very good coach, but Port have high draft picks for a number of years, and some of those draft picks are now into there second and third years, even if that was under Primus they have had 30+ games. They have also had a relativly easy draw. They will win a few more and probably just miss the 8.

[BigMart]

Chad Winguard
Hamish Hartlett
Travis Boak
Jackson Trengove
Brad Ebert
Robbie Gray

Some serious A Grade talent there

[BigMart]

Forgot Ollie Wines

[PJ]

Currently their young players are way ahead of ours and they have a better spread of age and experience. We have excellent top age players but not an even amount underneath. That's not Watters fault, his and Hinkley's situations are quite different. At this point neither is "better" than the other - Time will tell.

[saintsRrising]

Is it top ten draft picks ?

Is it the coach?

Well firstly yes they have had a soft draw to date, but you still have to win on the day.

They have drafted well...

And Hinkley has gotten the players to lift their workrate....including at training so that they are a much fitter team.

....and then Hinkley is very astute tactics wise.

[stevie]

Forgot Ollie Wines

And Wristhoff

[Greg T]

Considering how bad port was last year ,what an amazing turn around.
Hinkley is what the dr ordered for them.
He has structured them well and got them fit.
He obviously has the footy smarts about him and knows his players already
Interesting to see whether the saints should have taken him on board ,especially with
What he had to work with from us....Time will tell

[bobmurray]

Don't underestimate the effect High Performance Manager. Darren Burgess has had on conditioning these guys aver summer..

Darren Burgess returned to the Port Adelaide Football Club in October 2012, five years after his first stint at Alberton and with an enhanced international reputation for guiding and building elite athletic performance.

After developing his skills in world football - with the Socceroos and the Liverpool Football Club in the English Premier League – Burgess comes with a wealth of experience and the latest knowledge in the world of high performance.

Might be better than Misson, who by the way, is having his reputation tarnished somewhat working at Melbourne....

[st_Trav_ofWA]

considering how bad they were under Primus it would be impossible to go backwards for them ... they have belief they are committed and above all they keep on going even when getting beaten they dont give up ... yes the opp has been not exactly flag favorites but gee they can only beat who they play ... good luck to them

[Moorabbin Man]

Intensity & Self Belief