Ken Hinkley addresses his side in Round 22. Image: AFL Photos.

KEN HINKLEY has his fingers crossed. 

"We are as selected," said Hinkley, or more accurately coughed as he endured the bug that for the past month has made Port Adelaide line-ups uncertain right up to the pre-game warm-up.

As selected - for Sunday's twilight clash with Fremantle in Perth - means Port Adelaide will honour the 22 who blitzed Greater Western Sydney by 51 points at Adelaide Oval on Sunday. The only planned change is with the tactical substitute by the recall of former captain Travis Boak (who withdrew last week's match with illness). Boak replaces Francis Evans on the interchange bench.

To cover what has become a curse - even in the pre-game warm-up - Port Adelaide loaded the plane to Perth on Saturday with two midfielders as emergencies - Jackson Mead and Hugh Jackson.

"It is a relief, no doubt about that, to have a team ready as we selected," added Hinkley. "But we still have illness everywhere, including me. So you are never quite sure when you will be hit again.

"As we get on the plane, it's the 23 ... as selected."

With a sweeping virus and a number of injury woes behind them, Port Adelaide travels to Perth with its selected 23 confident they will all play. Image: AFL Photos.

Just as critical as the clean bill of health in the named line-up is the confidence in the group after snapping a four-game losing streak.

"That win consolidated belief," Hinkley said. "The scoreboard was saying we were being beaten, but we never felt we were far off mark in the way we were playing. The Geelong game certainly felt that way - even with all the incredible setbacks we had leading into the game (that led to six changes to the final line-up, two by illness on the morning of the match).

"The boys have taken a lot of confidence out of their performances recently. And even when those (injury and illness setbacks) have forced us to play a young squad, our best is still very good. 

"We backed up that confidence last week against GWS."

Port Adelaide got back on the winners' list in Round 22 with a strong win over an in-form Giants outfit. Image: AFL Photos.

MISSION STATEMENT: Port Adelaide is chasing win No.16 for the season. This would have Port Adelaide share equal wins with Brisbane, but sit third on the ladder by inferior percentage.

The final equation would then be - 

HOME QUALIFYING FINAL: Win against Richmond at home in round 24 while hoping St Kilda score an upset win against Brisbane. 

But first to Perth to deal with the 14th-ranked Fremantle.

"We are looking for consistency in our performance," Hinkley said. "That is not always easy when you travel; teams face that challenge to produce their best when they travel. 

"Fremantle is in good form. We won't find it perfect for us over there. So we must consolidate what we do well. That would reinforce how we need to behave to deliver a consistent, four-quarter game. It is all about building to that perfect game we are all chasing.

"Right now, we are trying to consolidate what made us good during that run of 13 wins. We are finding our way back towards that."

Following a four-game losing streak, Port Adelaide will be hoping to finish the home-and-away season with a string of important wins. Image: AFL Photos.

ON THE ROAD: Port Adelaide this season has won in Melbourne, won in Sydney and won in Hobart while putting together a 6-3 win-loss record outside of Adelaide Oval.

Some might see a dress rehearsal on the long haul to Perth as timely should Port Adelaide be called to Brisbane for a final at the Gabba next month.

"We enjoy opportunities to travel, so it is not an issue nor an experience we need to get under our belt," Hinkley said. "Our results say we have been pretty positive when we have travelled.

"Every trip away has a benefit for us. We certainly don't need to practise travel when as a non-Victorian club we get plenty of practice in that space."

OPPO WATCH: Fremantle has fallen from finalist to non-contender during the past 12 months, but the past three weeks have revealed a team that has found success in moving from a slower, sideways style to take on the game with run.

Fremantle declared its intent to shape the top-eight by beating AFL premier Geelong at Kardinia Park by seven points and pushed Brisbane in a three-point loss at Perth Stadium a fortnight ago. The 101-point thrashing of bottom-ranked West Coast in the Western Derby at the weekend highlights the new energy in Justin Longmuir's group

"It is a young Fremantle - and they have their high-speed players back," Hinkley said. "And they are playing well - Lachie Schultz, Michael Fredericks, Sam Switkowski, Bailey Banfield ... they are presenting with a running team. On a big open ground and in dry conditions it will be a good challenge."

Port Adelaide has a 22-18 win-loss record against Fremantle with wins in three of the past four matches.

MIDFIELD POWER: Zak Butters, Connor Rozee and Jason Horne-Francis were described as "dynamic" by Greater Western Sydney coach Adam Kingsley last week - and on Sunday are expected to change the script for Port Adelaide-Fremantle games.

Hinkley has his optimism rising with another midfielder. 

"We certainly have upside in what that midfield could be," Hinkley said. "But Ollie Wines was really significant last week. We got a great boost out of seeing our vice-captain back to somewhere near his absolute best. 

"We get a Brownlow Medallist in good form; that is a pretty handy gain for your footy team. Ollie knows how much he can add to the midfield. He has not been terrible; and now he is back to the Ollie that we know after so many interruptions this year. The good part of his story now is Ollie will be building his form at the back end of the year where others will be stopping ..."

Experienced midfielder Ollie Wines is building his form, just in time for Port Adelaide's 2023 finals campaign. Image: AFL Photos.

YOUNG RUCKS: Sam Hayes retained lead ruck duties - and deals with Fremantle's prize recruit Luke Jackson in the absence of Sean Darcy.

"Sam is better every week as he gets past that AC (shoulder) injury," Hinkley said. "He recovered quickly early in the week and gave us great optimism that he would be fine for this week. 

"Sam has another great opportunity. We have had great conversations all year on the challenges he would face this season. He has embraced every opportunity to make himself better and make the team better. Great credit where it is due - Sam has the consecutive games he has been striving to get."

Sam Hayes has been valiant in the ruck, relishing his opportunity in the AFL side. Image: AFL Photos.

OVERDUE: Port Adelaide enters the modern Perth Stadium for the seventh time since 2018 - and first time since July 3 last year. It will be chasing its first win against Fremantle at this ground after losses of eight points lasting season, 21 in 2019 and nine in 2018.

Shorter than the old bastion of Western Australian football - Subiaco Oval - the wing boundary at Perth Stadium is even wider, by five metes, than at the MCG (165 metres).

"Our form there has been on and off and on and off," Hinkley said. "The game against Fremantle last year - we started well, middle two quarters were terrible and we finished very strong. We have played well in patches. We have not played well consistently.

"There is no significant challenge at Perth Stadium. It is not as new as it was to us. There is nothing unusual. We just have not executed for long enough there. It's not that we can't - we just haven't. 

"And until you do, it will be brought up - as our record against Brisbane was until the start of the year when we beat them for the first time in five seasons. Those challenges are there until you stop them. We get the chance to do that this week."

The match is the last of round 23 and starts at 4.10pm SA time.