Hi Power supporters,

After three days of early morning training sessions Ken and Burgo allowed the playing group to have the morning off to rest and recuperate from a gruelling first three days.

Having said that all the boys woke at the usual time for breakfast and I headed down at around 8.00am to join them for some fuel for the big day ahead. My breakfast menu included an omelette, cereal, fruit and yoghurt to kick start my day.

After breakfast I went for a walk and stretch and then headed to my room with Cameron Hitchcock to watch another instalment of the series the Walking Dead, a show about zombies that I find strangely entertaining.

For the last part of my morning off I just relaxed in my room listening to music by which time it was 1.00pm and the team was ready to board the bus for Dubai Sports City with another challenging day of training not far away.

On arrival I had the fortune of being able to watch the closing stages of the PISL – Power Indoor Soccer League – which is an intensely fought competition between two teams made up of assistant coaches and football staff.

Normally these titanic battles are played at Alberton in our indoor grassed facility but this was history in the making as the PISL was taken to the international stage for the first time.

The two teams were made up of the following football staff:

Team A

Darren Burgess, Josh Carr, Aaron Greaves, Garry Hocking, Jordie Hinkley (Ken’s son drafted under the PISL father-son rule) and physiotherapist Tim O’Leary.

Team B

Matthew Nicks, Tyson Edwards, Marcus Drum (new player welfare manager), Julian Hatch (video content producer), Andrew Rondinelli (nutritionist) and Ian McKeown (strength and conditioning).

I only caught the last few minutes of a very dramatic, heart-stopping contest. With scores locked away at 4-4 both teams attacked and counter-attacked until an ambitious play by Hocking saw Team A turn the ball over in the midfield. Although brave by Hocking this turned out to be the match-turning play because Hatch, who had already scored two, wheeled onto his trusty left boot and nailed the winning goal past a hapless O’Leary in goals.

Once the wild celebrations settled the votes were handed out for BOP – best on pitch. One vote was awarded to Drum, two votes to Hatch for an eye-catching three goal game and three votes to Tyson Edwards for all round virtuoso display. I’m telling you that Tyson Edwards is still nearly the fittest bloke at the club and could easily just sit in a forward pocket and kick a lazy three goals a game. He is a marvel and has already been great with his ideas and contribution as an assistant coach.

After the drama of the PISL, the players warmed up in the indoor area preparing for the customary yo-yo running drill. As we warmed up Josh Carr announced to the team that in one shot he could pick a footy up off the ground and hit the top of the soccer cross bar from 30 metres.

Most of us thought Carry would have no chance. In fact, with those ageing legs, I was confident he wouldn’t make the distance. But Carry, as is his way, promptly took up the challenge. Hocking was his swingman and was strategically placed to flick the ball up to Carry who would then have a ping. Well, as you’ll see later on portadelaidefc.com.au, Hocking scooped the ball up perfectly to Carry who swung onto his famous left boot and precisely nailed the Sherrin into the cross bar with his first kick. The great man certainly hasn’t lost it.

Well some several hours later at the point of writing this diary we still haven’t heard the end of it from Carry so as a playing group, to quieten him down, we’re all going to take up the challenge and prove that it is not that hard to hit the cross bar from 30 metres. Watch this space for an update on how we go.

Following the warm up we hit the track for another torturous three hour repetitive session made up of tackling drills and high-intensity handball games where the competitive juices really came to the fore. It’s been great to see how the entire playing group is attacking pre-season with great enthusiasm. This includes the young draftees who have not just fitted in well, but have contributed strongly in these highly-competitive handball games.

After training we gathered for a team dinner at the Dubai Sports City followed by an AUSKICK clinic with local expats from Australia. It was a great night with around 60 children and their parents enjoying perfect conditions and an opportunity to mix with AFL players. Our players conducted a range of skills sessions and freely signed autographs for the excited locals. The night culminated with a big group photo and it was great to see all the kids go home with a smile on their face.

The clinic concluded at around 8.30pm at which point we jumped on the team bus and headed back to our hotel. Just like the previous three night the entire group was exhausted and we all retreated to our rooms for a good night’s sleep ahead of another early morning training session tomorrow.

Speak again tomorrow!
Jasper