PORT ADELAIDE has a reputation for responding in supposed crisis - as well noted twice last season. Hefty defeats (to eventual premier Brisbane by 79 points and Geelong by 84 points in a final) were followed by gritty victories.

And so the template stays the same for the home-season opener against Richmond at Adelaide Oval on Saturday afternoon after the 91-point loss to Collingwood at the MCG.

"We will not panic," Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley said at Alberton on Tuesday morning knowing the record books point to meaningful responses from his team after big losses.

"I am still excited by what this team can do. I am excited by the growth of this team. And I am excited by the direction of this football club. 

"Clearly we had a very disappointing performance (against Collingwood) and we need to rectify that - and we have to move on (to Richmond). 

"We own the performance. We are really disappointed in our performance. But let's be clear - we played a really bad game of football and the only way we can fix that is to get back to work."

The record of strong responses from Port Adelaide players challenged to correct poor results leaves Hinkley keeping belief in his charges rather than preparing an axe for selection on Thursday.

"(What) I have to consider," said Hinkley, "is the players' consistency over a long period of time has been pretty good. I am not going to throw them all away and say it is 'all your fault'. That is not the case. We did not play well. We let ourselves down; we let everyone down at Port Adelaide.

"Reality is it is Round one. I am going to trust the boys a fair bit."

WHY, WHY, WHY: Port Adelaide's review of the biggest loss under Hinkley began immediately on Saturday night with clear answers on why that result unfolded.

"We were beaten in all phases of the game," Hinkley repeated on Tuesday. "It was not just one phase of the game. We turned up ready to perform, we thought. But clearly we were not at the level we needed to be - and that was at contest, our ability to move the ball which had been pretty good a couple of weeks earlier (against St Kilda). We did not see that coming ... but we anticipate we will be much better than that when we play again."

HOW, HOW, HOW: Everything needs to improve - and Port Adelaide is not short of notes on how to correct a bad performance as noted last season.

"Normally, you will go clutching for everything," said Hinkley. "But you also have to acknowledge it was an unusual performance for a team that has been pretty consistent. 

"We are still optimistic about what this team - that is different (to those of recent seasons) can achieve. You won't get me thinking that we are falling off the perch. 

"We all have to live with that bad performance. But we are not going to put anything that is not real on the table.

"We also have to remember that was game one of 23. We will mark ourselves at the end of the season not the start. We now have to work really hard to turn that result (against Collingwood) around and we understand what our best football looks like. The players know that. The obligation is to perform. We get our chance on Saturday."

SCORING POWER: Port Adelaide's 45-point score against Collingwood was the team's lowest score since 2021 (in defeat to Brisbane that was followed by victory in a Showdown).

Hinkley was not prepared to put selection on the agenda at his weekly press conference on Tuesday - two days before teams are announced - and nor was he looking to cast aside a new attacking plan on one result.

"We will persist because we will not panic," Hinkley said. "That is the key. We have to stick to the course we are on and we know what that course normally delivers for us."

BOAK TRIBUTE: Former Port Adelaide captain Travis Boak will become the all-time games record holder at Alberton surpassing Russell Ebert's mark of 392 official matches. 

"Travis becomes the outright record holder at a club that is well known and well loved," Hinkley said. "Trav is a great person and I am so proud that he takes the record from an absolute great player and person of our football club in Russell. 

"It is significant. Trav is going to play more games and it is really pleasing (that he is not slowing down). Travis has had a lot of interruptions during the pre-season but to his great credit he has come out to perform at a pretty high level in a game where the team was struggling. He showed great leadership."

OPPO WATCH: Hinkley opted to see Richmond live at the MCG on Thursday night when the supposed wooden spoon contender shocked Carlton with a second-half blitz.

"I was impressed with their energy and high level of that energy," Hinkley said. "The narrative around Richmond (as a cellar dweller) was unfair. We understand this is AFL football and if you do not bring your best you will get beaten badly ... they are going to be a real challenge for us on Saturday and we look forward to that."