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PORT Adelaide coach Matthew Primus has sounded a warning to his players by dropping key defender Alipate Carlile because he isn't fit enough.

Primus said Carlile had been "on notice" for three weeks but hadn't met the fitness standards expected of him.

The axed Carlile will play for South Adelaide in the SANFL this weekend, leaving the Power without one of their best defenders.
 
"We realise he's a really important player and he's going to play an important part of our future, but there's standards we wanted to be set and he hasn't quite reached them," Primus said.?

"He has worked hard [to meet them] but he obviously hasn't worked as hard as he'd needed to."

Carlile recently played his 100th AFL game and had been in reasonable form in 2012.

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But Primus flagged the 25-year-old's inability to see games through as the reason for his axing.

"I think the key forwards and key backs have to do that and physically he's just not quite capable of doing that," he said.

"We know he's got to play on the best players and that's hard, but to be able to stay out there for long periods of time [is essential] and he hasn't been quite able to do that.

"Therefore he's cost himself his position this week."

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The decision to drop Carlile is a brave one from the selection panel, especially given the Power have drifted to 13th on the ladder after last week's loss at home to Hawthorn.

"It wasn't taken lightly, but in the context of where we're going as a group it was an important decision to make," Primus said.

"It's where we're heading as a group and the standards that our playing group want to set, the professionalism of it all, so we've got to make sure we've got a benchmark."

The Power enjoy a bye next weekend, and Primus said the door was open for Carlile to reach the required fitness standards and return to face Geelong in round 14.

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Primus said the onus now rested on the rest of the backline to "pick up the slack" on Sunday.

"Round one we played without Jackson (Trengove) and had to use other players to go down back and fill the void for us and we'll do that again Sunday," he said

"We think we can cover him with Jackson and 'Chappy' (Troy Chaplin) down there."

Harry Thring covers Port Adelaide news for AFL.com.au. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Harry