Former Port Adelaide defender Hamish Hartlett has named the five Power players he thinks will be the club’s biggest improvers in 2022.
Hartlett is expecting Port Adelaide quintet Riley Bonner, Zak Butters, Mitch Georgiades, Sam Hayes and Lachie Jones to further develop their games this year.
Speaking on SEN SA Breakfast, the former Power vice-captain profiled each of the five Port players.
Riley Bonner
“He’s often been the whipping boy in recent years, whether that’s warranted or not is up to anyone’s discretion, but the first player I’m going to mention is Riley Bonner.
“I know he’s super fit. Last year, ‘Bons’ trained as a winger and a high half-forward in the pre-season, he actually played that role in Round 1 against North Melbourne in Melbourne and he was playing really well in the first half of that game.
“He then went to soccer the ball off the ground and tore his hamstring pretty badly, missed a big portion of the season in the front-half of the year.
“He's feeling far more confident and comfortable around the group, he’s been there six or seven years now. For some guys, it takes them a little while to feel comfortable in their environment in a football club and I feel like ‘Bons’ is getting to that place now where he knows himself … and he’s feeling really comfortable and confident in the playing group.
“The other thing is his performance in the Preliminary Final last year against the Doggies – he was best on ground for Port Adelaide by a long way. I just feel like he would’ve gained a significant amount of confidence out of that performance.”
Zak Butters
“His talent is undeniable and unquestionable. I think everyone is aware of that
“Last year his season was decimated by a really significant injury with one that affected the nerve in the side of his leg.
“His attitude is going to make him one of the elite players of the competition, he’s just a guy that works his backside off, he’s always doing extras after every single session.
“He’s just always doing stuff to make himself better, he trains and plays at the right intensity, he’s crazily hard at it for how small he is.
“He’s going to be one that will take his game to another level (in 2022), I think he’ll spend more time in the midfield rather than playing forward, expect some big things from him.”
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Mitch Georgiades
“It’s all going to come down to continuity that he can get in his training. He’s had some soft tissue injuries and some little niggles that have just hampered his progress a little bit.
“His athletic prowess is almost unparalleled. He’s a guy who can run up and down the ground all day … his aerobic capacity is outstanding. He’s got speed, explosive power, we’ve obviously seen his aerial attributes as well in terms of how high he can jump and how good his hands can be at times.
“My one query I guess would be how he is being used in that I think a lot of the game plan revolves around kicking the ball to contest and I’m not sure that Mitch is exactly that type of player. I think Mitch is more of a lead-up type player.
“His goalkicking and his set shot routine is outstanding. Very rarely misses in front of goal.”
Sam Hayes
“He’s just a genuine, natural old school ruckman.
“He’s huge for starters … he’s got big, long arms. He gets around the ground well at SANFL level, he takes marks, he can actually find a bit of the ball.
“He’s been the dominant ruckman of that competition for a long, long time and I guess there’s been questions as to why he hasn’t been able to get to that next level.
“The biggest question mark internally from the club has been on his running capacity and probably his ability to run out a full game at AFL level.
“Hopefully ‘Haysey’ gets that opportunity in one or two of the pre-season games to test himself out against other genuine AFL quality ruckman, to see where he stacks up in terms of being able to run out a full game and to have the impact on a game that he has been able to have at SANFL level.
“With Peter Ladhams having gone to Sydney over the trade period, that second ruck spot is definitely up for grabs for ‘Haysey’ to take.”
Lachie Jones
“He’s shown that he’s more than capable of playing at the level.
“His body let him down a lot last year, but he’s tough, he’s uncompromising and he plays in the true Port Adelaide fashion. He’s got amazing closing speed … but also something that’s overlooked a little bit is his aerobic capacity.
“He’s got a tough look about him and a tough approach to his game that I know Ken Hinkley loves, particularly playing across half-back. He’s got line-breaking capabilities with his kick, he can roost the ball a very, very long way.
“It’s just a question of whether his body can hold up at the level.”