POWER midfielder Dom Cassisi says the round one clash with Geelong will be the perfect opportunity for Port Adelaide to ‘prove all the critics wrong’ following the bitter disappointment of Grand Final day.

The Power will host the Cats at AAMI Stadium on Thursday March 20 in one of two games that evening to mark the opening of the 2008 premiership season.

Last year outgoing Fremantle coach Chris Connolly credited Port Adelaide with destroying the Dockers season and, in turn, his career after the Power stormed home to claim victory at Subiaco in round one of 2007.

Cassisi said the game against Fremantle was a good example of how round one could shape a season.

“I think a win in round one is massive for a club and for a team’s confidence,” Cassisi said.

“It just repays all that hard work you do over the summer and to beat Freo in Perth last year was massive and this year it will be massive again if we can get over the line against Geelong.”

Over the next ten days the Power will have to endure constant reminders of its shattering loss to Geelong in last year’s grand final, but Cassisi said the players were mentally prepared for the rematch with the Cats.

“We can’t change the result of the grand final and you always so look forward to round one of every year because it’s such a long pre-season,” he said.

“We knew we would have to play Geelong again at some stage during the year and it just happens to be round one. Hopefully we can prove all the critics wrong from that day last year.”

Traditionally Port Adelaide has been a slow starter in the season proper having won just four opening-round games in the club’s 11-year history.

But significantly, in the four years that Port Adelaide has won its round one fixture the club has gone on to make the finals and, more importantly, two Grand Finals.

“Fremantle in round one last year, we had a massive focus on and it’s no different this year with Geelong,” Cassisi said.

“We know how important it is to get off to a good start and it looks like Geelong is going really well at the moment too so it should be a good game.”

The whiteboard full of Geelong match-ups is already on the wall inside Alberton and Cassisi said it was important the Power made the most of the additional time they had to prepare for the game.

“Preparation-wise we need to know our opposition well and do a lot of homework on them, which is what we’re doing at the moment, he said.”

“It’s a bit hard because we haven’t really had a chance to see Geelong play on TV and likewise for them with us, but as long as we’re ready to go and focussed on it, we’ll be good.”

Cassisi said the club was “pretty happy” with its solid win over Fremantle at Noarlunga on Saturday in the searing heat.

The players had a light training session on Monday morning followed by recovery in the pool, while others rested some sore spots in the cool spa temporarily residing in the players’ kitchen.

“We haven’t really played in temperatures as hot as Saturday before,” Cassisi said.

“It was definitely taxing on the body and it’s hard to recover, but we put things in place for after the game, so that come today we were re-hydrated and ready to go again for training.

“I felt pretty flat yesterday, but I guess you feel flat after every game. By the looks of things, the boys trained pretty well today and everyone looks in good nick.”

Dean Brogan (abdominal strain), Troy Chaplin (hand) and Matt Thomas (corked thigh) will have a week to prove their fitness for the round one clash.

Michael Wilson (achilles), while not expected to play until after the mid-season break, appeared to have made good progress on Monday when he was seen running freely around the boundary line long after his teammates hit the showers.