PORT Adelaide senior coach Matthew Primus has backed the Power’s approach to play youth throughout 2011, believing it will hold the club in strong stead in the future.

“We had a Member’s Information Night a few weeks ago,” the first year coach recalled at a media conference on Thursday.

“The path we’re going down it’s so that I can look them in the eye in 12 to 18 months time and say we’ve given ourselves the best chance to rebuild this football club to be a club that plays in finals in the next coming years.

“If we didn’t do this,” Primus said, “I couldn’t look them in the eye and say we were doing that.”

Like the fans, Primus said the entire club was disappointed with the way the 2011 season had turned out for the club thus far.

“At the start of the year it wasn’t our aim,” he said of the club’s current position as last on the ladder, with just two wins. “Our aim was to win as many games as we could to get in the finals, but also to play a lot of our younger players and give them the opportunity and experience.

“We understand the fans frustrations,” Primus continued. “We don’t want to finish the year on the bottom of the ladder and we’re going to do everything to not do that, but we’re also not going to compromise the path we’re going down with our youth.”

With the Balfours Showdown XXXI coming off the back of the Power’s second bye, Primus said that every AFL club is working out how to come to terms with the bye and perform the week afterwards.

Online Game Day: Power vs Crows

“What it’s done for us is a good time to get away for a couple of days for all the players,” he said.

“It’s been a disappointing four or five weeks for us, and we know what kind of game is coming up the week after that. We know our run home has got some pretty big games and we’re playing some pretty good teams, and it’ll be great to play Adelaide coming straight off the bye.”

Justin Westhoff remains a chance to resume in the Balfours Showdown XXXI, but key defender Alipate Carlile has been ruled out, as has ruckman Dean Brogan.

“He’ll come back from it but we’ll be very tentative,” Primus said of the approach taken with the retiring warrior. “Whenever he is ready we’ll probably take an extra week for him before we get him back in the team.”

Matt Primus will be on the Channel 9 Footy Show this evening - tune in from 9.30pm to see the coach as a special guest.