Zak Butters is one of competition’s most exciting young talents. Photo: AFL MEDIA.
It was a case of so close, but so far for Port Adelaide last year as they fell at the second-last hurdle to be cruelly denied a spot in the 2020 grand final.
The agonising preliminary final loss to eventual premier Richmond will no doubt still be burning in the guts of every Power player over the summer, especially those who participated in the six-point defeat.
In response, Port Adelaide sought to further bolster its playing list by recruiting goalsneak Orazio Fantasia from Essendon and key defender Aliir Aliir from the Swans. They even added former Collingwood premiership player Tyson Goldsack to their rookie list after he captained their SANFL side.
But while experienced talent is usually a sure-fire way of helping taking a side further, and in the Power’s case see them at least take one extra step by making a grand final, their improvement might also come from within, and the following three players could provide what coach Ken Hinkley is looking for.
MILES BERGMAN
The Power’s top pick from the 2019 draft (No. 14 overall) probably would’ve featured in the senior team last season had there been a feeder comp for him to test his wares in.
However, with the Port Adelaide Magpies withdrawing from the 2020 SANFL competition under instructions from the AFL, Bergman had no meaningful way of pressing for selection outside of scrimmages.
But to his credit, the 19-year-old returned to the club over summer in outstanding condition, having put on a heap of muscle, and he’s been training well so far during the pre-season.
While he probably won’t be a walk-up start to the team in round one, after all Port Adelaide did just finish in the top four, you can expect him to make his debut at some stage.
With the season and matches reverting back to their regular 23-round and 20-minute-quarter lengths respectively, a strong squad mentality is what will take teams far, so that should also work in Bergman’s favour.
He can play either half-forward or half-back and he’s got some serious weapons that could really benefit the team such as his blistering speed, his class and his ability to take the game on.
ZAK BUTTERS
The 20-year-old is already one of the young superstars of the competition, and the scary thing for the rest of the AFL is that this kid is only getting started.
By the end of 2019, Connor Rozee was the early clubhouse leader of Port Adelaide’s 2018 draft ‘big three’ comprising of him, Butters and Xavier Duursma.
But fast forward 12 months, and Butters yanked that mantle away from Rozee following an outstanding season which saw him play 17 of 18 games, kick 11 goals and average 15 disposals a match.
And the former No. 12 pick isn’t resting on his laurels either because he has apparently been tearing up the track during pre-season training and he’s already doing some things that are pleasing Hinkley before a ball has even been kicked in anger.
Butters might only have 36 games and 23 goals to his credit, but he looms as a really important piece of Port Adelaide’s plans for the season ahead.
If there’s been a knock on the Power over recent times, it’s probably been that their execution going into forward 50 hasn’t been good enough and suffers from being too Charlie Dixon-centric.
However, getting the ball into the hands of players like Butters will be vital for the side’s development, because he’s a fantastic user of the ball who can really straighten them up on offence.
He’s also an extremely intelligent player who reads the ball incredibly well at stoppages and almost has a telepathic ability to know where it’s going to go in order to set up scoring opportunities.
If you thought his 2020 was outstanding, to borrow a line from Bachman Turner Overdrive: “You ain’t seen nothing yet”.
PETER LADHAMS
After only playing five games in his first three years at the club, and having to wait until 2019 to make his debut, the big ruckman had a big impact last year and quickly showed how important he could be.
His 2020 season wasn’t without controversy, though, as he copped a three-game suspension in August for breaching the AFL’s strict COVID protocols.
That incident infuriated the Power’s football department, but the strong public response at the time from the likes of coach Hinkley and footy manager Chris Davies indicated how valuable the 23-year-old was, in a backhanded kind of way.
If the Power didn’t have tremendous faith in him as a footballer, it probably would’ve been easier for them to offload him to another club and they’re optimistic that Ladhams will repay them this season.
The good news for the Port Adelaide faithful is that it sounds as though he has really knuckled down and his professionalism over the off-season has taken another step forward.
It appears that the harsh lesson from that incident has been learned and he has become fully committed to the cause of helping take the Power to their second premiership.
Having played just the 15 career games, including 10 last year, there’s no doubt that Ladhams has still got a lot of growth left in his game not only as a ruckman but also as a forward to play alongside Dixon.
However, he’s already pushing really hard to usurp Scott Lycett as the No. 1 ruckman at the club and he showed in 2020 that he has the capabilities of not only achieving that goal, but also playing as a focal point in attack.
