ACCORDING to coach Mark Williams there was one major difference behind the Grand Final results of 2004 and 2007 – Michael Wilson.

In 2004, Wilson battled through the pain and sleep deprivation associated with his two badly injured shoulders and despite being barely able to lift his arms above his ahead, mustered the strength to hold the premiership cup aloft after the Power's maiden flag.

"There was never any doubt I'd get through the 2004 season," Wilson said after announcing his retirement on Tuesday.

"I was supposed to have every second week off for the last part of the year and I think Choco gave me one week off, which was nice of him.

"I think the hardest part of that year was the initial part and just getting used to playing with the shoulder injuries.

"As the year went on, as people with shoulder injuries know, the lack of sleep and the pain wears on you. You're still able to play, but mentally, it wears you down and it takes a lot more to freshen up for the next game and the next impact."

Coach Mark Williams, who ranks Wilson alongside former star Gavin Wanganeen as the club's bravest player, was so inspired by the former vice-captain's effort, he awarded him a once off coach's award.

"Only once in my 10 years of coaching have I handed out a coach's award. I gave it to Michael at the end of the 2004 season," Williams said.

"He played with shocking injuries that both needed surgery at the end of the season, after playing most of the season including the finals and grand final. To see the hurt and hardship he endured for the team was just remarkable."

In 2007, Port Adelaide took to the field in its second-ever Grand Final minus one Michael Wilson, who had cruelly snapped his achilles tendon in the preliminary final win over North Melbourne just seven days earlier.

The Power were completely outclassed by a rampant Geelong as Wilson watched, standing with the aid of crutches, from the stands.

"Our result in last year's Grand Final says to me that the thing we missed most that day was Michael Wilson," Williams said.

"He played the rest of the year and, you saw our results all year, then Michael didn't play and it was a 20-goal result from one player.

"Obviously, he wasn't going to kick 20 or save 20 goals, but the effect he has on the playing group ... in your coaching career, you never find too many players that have that sort of impact on the side."

Wilson was on the comeback from the achilles tear when a knee injury put an end to his 192-game career.

The triple Fos Williams medallist said the hardest part of saying goodbye was knowing what lay ahead for the young playing group.

"The blokes that are here now, you can see so much more potential in. You can see they are going to have a good year next year and that's why I was pushing so hard to get back in the team," Wilson said.

"In Choco's office over the last five or six weeks I'd been saying, 'Get me back in, get me back in', because I can see there is going to be a lot of success here in the near future.

"If I was able to sneak in one more year, it would've been a good year, but once your body is gone, there is no way of getting around it.

"But hopefully from me people will be able to see that you can work through a lot of hard things and still be able to add to and have an impact on a winning side. You find a lot of challenges, but you find a way to get through it and I think that's what needs to happen this year and this pre-season.

"Hopefully, the players take a little bit of that [advice] with them and go from 14th, where we are at the minute, to making it back into the eight next year."