PORT Adelaide return to the field against Collingwood with a win vital to keep itsr finals hopes alive.
OPPOSING FORCES
PORT ADELAIDE
LAST MATCH: Round 14: Port Adelaide 12.12 (84) def by Sydney 14.10 (94)
COLLINGWOOD
LAST MATCH: Round 14: Collingwood 12.19 (91) def by Hawthorn 15.11 (101)
HEAD TO HEAD
Port Adelaide 11 v 14 Collingwood
LAST FIVE
Port Adelaide 2 v 3 Collingwood
THIS YEAR
Port Adelaide: LLWWWLLLWWLLL v WLWWWLLWWWWLL Collingwood
TRIBUTES: Power and Pies agree on tributes for Walsh
PLAYBILL
Round 15
Port Adelaide v Collingwood
Adelaide Oval
Thursday 9 July
First Bounce: 7:20pm (local) / 7:50pm (EST) / 5:50pm (AWST)
Hashtags: #AFLPowerPies
Broadcast: Channel 7 (national), FoxFooty (national), FIVEaa (SA)
YOU’RE INVITED
Pre-game events
March from the Mall
Gawler Place Canopy, Adelaide
March starts: 6:00pm
March arrives: 6:20pm
Other exciting events and supporter activities situated in the Southern and Eastern Plazas of the Adelaide Oval.
Power Playground is located in the Eastern Plaza.
Post-game events
William Magarey Room
Level 3, Riverbank Stand
Adelaide Oval
All welcome, selected players and officials in attendance.
TIME MACHINE
Round 19, 2014: The Pies outlasted the Power to record a six-point win at the MCG.
PORT ADELAIDE 1.0 5.7 8.8 10.10 (70)
COLLINGWOOD 2.3 6.6 9.7 11.10 (76)
Best: Hartlett, Ebert, O’Shea, Wines, Westhoff, Cornes
Goals: Hartlett 4, Boak, Gray, Monfries, Moore, Schulz, Wingard
At MCG
FOUR QUARTERS
THE STAKES
With a number of teams still in a logjam in the middle of the ladder, every game is vital for Port’s chances of finals. Collingwood sits a game out of the top four and will be keen to get clear of the chasing pack, especially in Dane Swan’s 250th game.
THE STOCKS
Jackson Trengove will be available to play after being cleared of the illness that sidelined him last week, while Travis Boak is also available after rolling his ankle against the Swans. Both Jay Schulz and Matthew Broadbent are free to play after being cleared by the Match Review Panel. Collingwood key defender Ben Reid will miss this week's game with a calf injury, and Travis Varcoe has been fined for low head-high impact (but also cleared to play).
THE HISTORY
Port Adelaide trails 11-14 in the head-to-head battle between the sides, with Collingwood having a narrow 3-2 win record over the last five games. The last time the two met was in Round 19 last year, when Hamish Hartlett kicked four goals in a tight contest where Collingwood just got over the line by six-points.
THE VIBE
While it will be an emotional moment when the stadium rises for a minute's silence on Thursday in memory of Phil Walsh, Port Adelaide knows the best tribute it can give their former assistant coach is to get the job done against Collingwood. They will be as determined as ever with a massive crowd out at Adelaide Oval behind them.
