AS Port Adelaide’s young guns jetted to Sydney this morning to kick off a training camp with the Rabbitohs, one player is apparently relishing the opportunity to train alongside the NRL’s elite.

Head of Football Development Aaron Greaves says Sam Powell-Pepper is particularly excited to throw his weight around at the combined tackling and grappling sessions as part of the hybrid program.

It’s all part of a week-long interstate camp for the club’s first and second year players, where the AFL and NRL sides will come together to share concepts and skills.

“When we explained this camp to the boys, Pep was the first one to put his hand up and say, ‘I’ll have a go at that!’,” Greaves told media at the airport on Monday morning.

“It’s great when they’ve got those attitudes and they’re keen to get there and give it a go.”

It comes as no surprise - the big-bodied midfielder has become well-known for playing a tough, physical brand of football likened to Richmond’s Dustin Martin.

But it’s not all about tackling – Greaves says there’s plenty to learn from another sporting code from both a physical and mental perspective, while also maintaining the boys’ strict running program.

“It is a physical camp, but in many different ways,” he said.

“A large component of the camp will be running - they’ll be doing two running sessions a day; morning and night, mixed in with their integration stuff with the Rabbbithos.

“A lot of it will be teaching them that when they’re in the challenge, they’ve got to stand up and they’ve got to find a way to fight through whatever’s thrown at them.”

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