JUNIOR RIOLI has credited Port Adelaide’s pre-season camp with helping him settle into life at Alberton.

Rioli and his teammates travelled to Queensland’s Sunshine Coast on Sunday for a high-intensity camp, aimed at building a large training load before Christmas while building connection between the playing and coaching group.

The camp wrapped up on Friday evening with players having completed a gruelling training schedule which saw them cover more than 52 kilometres on top of numerous gym sessions.

The former West Coast forward has only been at the club for around a month but has been full of praise for the way he has felt welcomed and comfortable, and said the camp has played a big part in that.

“This week’s kind of made me feel a lot more comfortable around the boys.

“Spending a week with them you get to see their personalities more and their mood swings and those kinds of things.

“I’ve been so welcome and it’s been one of the more enjoyable camps I’ve been on.

“Now I’m heading into the new year looking forward to getting back together with the boys and getting into games.”

As well as the physical element to the camp, players also had some fun and some team-building activities along the way.

Among them was a gel ball hit-out with players split into teams and taking on various missions for points.

The group also carried out an “amazing race” activity which required individual teams to build their own raft and paddle it across a vast lake to carry out various challenges.

There was also a Bingo and cards night. Rioli said even just having meals together as a playing and coaching cohort has been valuable for him and the wider group.

“The connection has been great,” he said. “Getting to know a lot of the boys I didn’t know a lot about, hearing their stories, it just helps your team play better footy.

“I didn’t really look at the running part – that’s just part of it – but when you’re hurting and encouraging each other you get the most out of the group.”

During a team-building session, Rioli stood up and talked glowingly about the culture he has observed during his short time at the club.

He said that was driven by coach Ken Hinkley and the other leaders, but he had also noted standards being set by young players – which he was not used to at West Coast.

“I also see a lot of past players still around the club so it shows there’s something special about this place that makes people want to stay or want to come back,” he elaborated.

“Culture is a big thing for me and this club has a great history, the culture is awesome.

“To be on the camp, spend time with those past players, it’s been great to hear their stories and why they come back.”

Rioli was traded to Port Adelaide as part of a deal which also saw the club land young midfielder Jason Horne-Francis from North Melbourne.

The 19-year-old has endured a difficult start to his time at Alberton after he was required to have surgery to decompress arteries behind his knees.

The camp was the first time he has run since arriving at the club.

“By Friday I was able to run up to five kilometres which was pleasing,” Horne-Francis said.

“It’s the first time I’ve been in rehab so it’s been a real wake up call. I just can’t wait to return to full contact training in the new year.

“The intensity of how our players train is really impressive and I’m naturally competitive, so I just can’t wait to get out there and join them.”

The former Kangaroo saw the value in the Sunshine Coast camp, particularly as a new player looking to build bonds with his teammates and learn how the club wants to play.

“It’s often hard coming into a new club and learning a new game plan so I found the educational part of this camp very useful,” he explained.

“We spent a lot of time as a group learning how we want to play next season and then immediately trained the way we wanted to play.

“The camp provided a great opportunity for me to get around my new teammates and learn more about them as individuals, not just players.

“It’s clear that the culture of this club is really strong and everyone is committed to helping each other get better.”