PORT ADELAIDE senior coach Ken Hinkley is expecting a fierce North Melbourne outfit when the two sides meet on Friday night at Adelaide Oval in ANZAC Round.

The Kangaroos have faced some media scrutiny after their disappointing result on Good Friday but Hinkley says teams tend to respond strongly, as his team has had to do in the past.

“We are ready for North Melbourne’s absolute best at the start,” Hinkley said at his weekly press conference on Thursday morning.

“They are a really strong footy club led well. Ziebell - great captain. Strong, tough players. We expect their best.

“I think it’s really worthwhile considering the pressure that every side at some stage gets put under.

“We aren’t dissimilar, we all get our moments when we are told we are pretty good and we get our moments we are told we are not so good.

“For us, we’ve been through that a number of times and we understand that. So, we understand the pressure that puts on you but we understand the response you typically give.”

The Power will face former player Jared Polec for the first time in an AFL game, and Hinkley says the challenge for his side is to not only limit his impact, but the impact of the entire Kangaroos side.

“He’s a good player. We miss him, there’s no doubt about that,” he said.

“He made some decisions he had to make but we’re pretty comfortable that we’ve got some great young people into our football club.

“Our challenge tomorrow as a team is to make sure he has a bad day.

“You have the best plans in the world sometimes but good players tend to be able to play good when you’re doing everything you possibly can to stop them.

“Our challenge is to not just try and stop him but stop the North Melbourne team.”

Friday night will mark the 16th consecutive occasion Port Adelaide will host an ANZAC Round clash, and the senior coach says it is an honour for the entire football club.

“It’s a great honour. It’s an honour as a football club we love to protect,” he said.

“I think we are playing for the 16th (consecutive) time in recognition of ANZAC Day.

“Just to be a part of that is a great honour as a footy club.

“We’d like to protect that as much as we can and we honour the troops in the best way we can - in a footy sense on the field of battle for us.”

The final teams will be released this evening ahead of huge clash with the Roos tomorrow night, with the first bounce at 7.20pm.