PORT ADELAIDE SANFL captain Cam Sutcliffe questioned whether he deserved the Magpies captaincy when he first came to the club at the start of the SANFL Statewide Super League season.
Sutcliffe - who was drafted from South Australia to Fremantle in 2012 - said it was a daunting proposition leading a team with such a rich history, but all he wanted to do was live up to the Port Adelaide standards.
“It’s hard not to get swept up by the history,” Sutcliffe told portadelaidefc.com.au.
“You see all of the past premierships on the wall, and you can’t help but have a read and have a look at it all.
“Also, having been involved with Russell Ebert in the community team, you understand the aura that revolves around him as well.
“When I first came to the club and was given the captaincy - the first thing I thought was, do I deserve this?
“Looking back on the year to date, I’ve tried to live up to the standard of the Port Adelaide way.”
Sutcliffe will now lead the Magpies into the 2019 SANFL Grand Final on Sunday afternoon, and the 27-year-old said the group is excited for the challenge, but they will be made to make at least one change, with speedy forward Aidyn Johnson suspended.
“The boys are up and about,” Sutcliffe said.
“Our main session will be tonight at Adelaide Oval. We had a light session on Tuesday to get a run into the legs.
“We’ve got some selection stuff to get done tonight - clearly Aidyn Johnson won’t be there on the weekend, so we will need to replace him.
“Whether we make any other changes, that will be up to Lokes (Matthew Lokan) and the crew.”
The Naracoorte product said the coaches and players wouldn’t change their approach too much this week, but admitted it was difficult not to get caught up in the history of success of the club.
“I know Barry Curtin has a good crew for Talking Footy at the Port Club tonight,” Sutcliffe said.
“We will try and go about our business as usual. We might show a few snippets on Friday of past premierships and stuff.
“It will get the boys up and about a little bit, but I don’t think too much will change.”
Port Adelaide and Glenelg will battle it out for the 2019 SANFL premiership on Sunday afternoon at Adelaide Oval, with the first bounce taking place at 3.00pm.
