PORT ADELAIDE’S first and second-year players returned to Adelaide on Thursday afternoon after a gruelling but rewarding camp in Sydney with NRL side – South Sydney Rabbitohs.

The four-day camp consisted of a multitude of conditioning sessions, grappling and tackling sessions, AFL-NRL hybrid games, and an inspirational crash course in the Rabbitohs’ history.

New draftee Joel Garner was particularly drawn to the similarities between the two clubs, and said the opportunity to learn aspects of a different sport was exciting.

“They had the same values and the same sort of history that our club does, which was really exciting to see,” Garner told reporters at Adelaide airport on Thursday afternoon.

“It was an awesome experience, and they made us feel very welcome.

“We were really lucky to be able to go up there and spend time with them, and we were very grateful to them for allowing us to use their facilities,” he said.

Improvement in the tackling and grappling techniques of the young, talented Port players was a focus for the coaching group, and Garner believes the lessons they learnt from the NRL side were important in their progress.

“We did plenty of tackling practice. It was really cool to learn their techniques, and now we can bring that back to the club,” he said.

The first and second-year players will return to Alberton on Friday to commence the rest of the 2018 pre-season campaign with their teammates.

More on portadelaidefc.com.au...