JOE ATLEY will play his first game in a Power guernsey – albeit a pre-season game – on Thursday night against the Saints.
The Power’s new midfield recruit came to Alberton via the most recent national draft.
The brother of North Melbourne’s Shaun, Joe returns to Victoria for his first taste of AFL-level football after playing in last Friday’s internal trial.
Atley said his first opportunity to play in the midfield against role models like Travis Boak, Ollie Wines and Brad Ebert was exciting.
“It’ll either be a first or second half in the midfield,” Atley told FIVEaa.
“I’ve been training mainly with the midfield, occasionally going forward or back, mixing up positions.”
Playing as part of Port’s more inexperienced trial game side last Friday at Alberton, Atley was part of a team that brought energy and pressure to the senior side.
“Our ‘White’ team did all right … we were the ‘B’ [team] but took it up to them [the ‘A’ team] in the first half, then probably fell away a bit,” Atley said.
“It was unreal, as a kid you watch these people on TV and think, ‘I wish I was out there playing with them,’ and then you actually get to do it – it’s pretty cool.”
Port Adelaide named an extended 29-man squad on Thursday which will be trimmed to 26 players for the Saints clash.
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