Brendan Lines July 24, 2020 02:30pm

Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley has axed utility Justin Westhoff ahead of the club’s clash against St.Kilda when the Power makes its return to Adelaide Oval this week in what could be a danger game for the ladder leaders.

Over 20,000 Port Adelaide fans are expected to attend Saturday night’s clash, for what will be the largest crowd the club will play to in the season thus far.

“The fans will be loud, it will feel like 50 (thousand fans) I’m sure when we get here tomorrow night and that will be exciting for sure,” Hinkley said at Adelaide Oval today.

“His true game is as a true utility and wherever we need him, we need him to play that role better and at the moment it’s been a little forward (in the) ruck and he hasn’t been able to influence the game enough in those two areas at the moment,” he said.

The numbers across Westhoff’s key stats are down slightly on average for the season, struggling to make double digits on disposals in the recent weeks.

That maybe more about opportunity — or lack of opportunity than form around forward contests for Westhoff, as Port’s attacking 50 is firmly under the reign of ‘King Charles’ Charlie Dixon.

A rest for Westhoff might be a blessing in disguise for Port as the season moves into its condensed phase from round nine, where player recovery and injury becomes a factor for Port who’s clash with Melbourne comes off a five day break.

Hinkley dismissed any suggestion that Port players might voice their preference not to make themselves available in the tight turnaround between games.

“We’re not in the business of not trying, we’re in the business of winning every game that we can,” he said.

“Our players won’t say that, they just want to play, they just want to play every game and that’s just what will make it challenging.”

Port Adelaide Captain Tom Jonas on Thursday said the risk of injury is something the players will have to wear.

“There might be case where it’s fifty-fifty decision and something goes wrong and they come out of the game easy but that’s the reality of our sport,” Jonas said.

St Kilda have included former Port players ruckman Paddy Ryder and defender Dougal Howard to their line up, both players will line up against their former club for the first time, Jonas says Ryder will be under the watch of Port’s midfield.

“We know what Paddy delivers, he’s a beautiful tap ruckman, it’s going top be a challenge for our midfielders and ruckman to compete with him and hopefully around the ground we can nullify him.”

While Jonas and Howard maybe opposite ends of each other on Adelaide Oval, the elusive Saint was able to sneak a goal in the win over Adelaide on Monday, lifting the Saints’ Adelaide Oval hoodoo.

The Saints are well poised for another bite at a win in Adelaide, as Port will undoubtedly feel expectation from their rusted-on faithful to not only deliver a win at home but show resilience in what could be a danger game.

“I think teams know they’re always up for a contest against us wether it right at the start of the game or they are a couple of goals ahead that we’re not going to lay down, the pleasing thing for us id where showing the resilience that we may not have shown in previous seasons where we’ve been challenged and we’ve been able to respond,” Jonas said.

Port Adelaide play St. Kilda Saturday 7.10pm local time.