JAY SCHULZ is looking forward to Sunday’s Showdown XXXVIII, but says the Power will need to improve its ball use through the middle of the ground if it’s to match the in-form Crows.
Port Adelaide have won two of its opening four games, while Adelaide lost its first against the Western Bulldogs last weekend after winning three consecutive matches under new coach and former Power midfield manager Phil Walsh.
While the Power’s key forward described the Crows’ early-season form as “fantastic”, he hopes consecutive wins over North Melbourne and Hawthorn will keep Port on the path to reaping further gains during the second quarter of the 2015 season.
“Showdowns are always a special weekend,” Schulz told portadelaidefc.com.au.
“It’s going to be a great weekend of footy and they’re in fantastic form and we look forward to the challenge, as we do every time we play them.
"We’ve played some really good opponents in the first four games of the year and have another tough one this week.
“It will be a hard fought battle and hopefully we can get the job done."
Schulz bagged five goals in the Power's win over Hawthorn last Saturday.
While he's enjoyed his return to form with nine majors in the last two games, it's the importance of the team improving on its poor second half last weekend that he believes will keep it on the right side of the scoreboard in coming weeks.
Beaten in the contested ball during the second half of Saturday's eight-point win, he says the Power will need to be on top of the Crows for a full game to get the result in what traditionally start at 50/50 games.
"It’s always good to be on the end of a few, but more importantly it’s back-to-back wins which is really good for us," Schulz said.
"But the second half against the Hawks shows you can never let your guard down when you play a quality side like Hawthorn, there’s a reason why they’re back-to-back premiers and we saw that in the second half."
With Hawthorn having 36 more inside-50 entries after half time, Schulz expects the Power to find a way to relieve the pressure on their defence this week.
That will come from winning the hard inside ball against the Crows.
"We’ve still got more work to do, and we’ll learn from it," he said.
"Hawthorn kept peddling it inside 50 and they’re got such dangerous small forwards as well as their tall guys.
"When it comes in that much your back line can only do so much, it all comes back to the inside ball and winning in the middle of the ground.
"It’s the heartbeat of every side and shows just how important it is, and it’s something we’ll always try to work hard on."
"There’s always room for improvement and hopefully we will throughout the year."
