PORT Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley has praised the Power's 26-point triumph over Melbourne as the best win of his time at the club.
Hinkley, who has entered his seventh season at the helm of the Power, saw his youth-charged line-up bust past last year's preliminary finalists at the MCG.
Their side included four debutants and 11 changes to last year's round 23 side, making Hinkley proud of the effort to begin Port's 2019 campaign.
"There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that this is the best win I've been involved in with Port Adelaide, including finals," he said post-game.
"Because of the side we put out there, because of the braveness we showed right through the summer, because of the commitment of a great group of young people.
"I think there was a lot of doubters. And I'm really pleased and really proud of [our players]."
After losing its way in the back end of last season – the Power lost six of their last seven games to miss the finals – Port altered its game style in the off-season, with Hinkley saying the round one performance epitomised the way they wanted to perform every week.
Hinkley welcomed the return of Port's brave ball movement and was satisfied, even when things didn't go their way, that his side didn't retreat.
"They never lost belief in what they want to be. I thought we had a pretty dominant performance in the last quarter, so it was a pretty flattering result for us," he said.
The Power's troupe of first-gamers – Willem Drew, Connor Rozee, Zak Butters and Xavier Duursma – all performed strongly in the upset win, but a smattering of old faces were also heavy lifters.
They included Tom Rockliff, who collected 44 disposals, former skipper Travis Boak (34 disposals), evergreen utility Justin Westhoff (five goals), reborn defender Jack Watts (22 and four rebound 50s) and star forward Robbie Gray (23 and 1.3).
Hinkley pointed to Rockliff's uninterrupted pre-season as a major reason for his return to form, and also said he was pleased for Watts, who had a controversial off-season but took to the role across half-back with class.
"I was incredibly proud of Jack. I've spoken openly about Jack having to make some changes as a person, and he's really trying to make some of those significant changes in his life. I think that reflected out on the footy ground today," Hinkley said.
"His ability to go and play back – where he's only played a half a game in the pre-season – we backed him in and he returned the favour today for us."
West Coast premiership ruckman Scott Lycett begun his Port Adelaide career in excellent form, partnering with Paddy Ryder to negate Melbourne star Max Gawn.
The Power appeared to physically impose themselves on Gawn around the ground, including away from ruck contests. Hinkley said it was crucial to nullify the All Australian.
"He's a really good player Max Gawn. We've got to wear him down. Great credit to him that it takes two people to try to wear him down," he said. "There was a plan for us to make his day hard."
