POWER Community Ltd, the community development arm of Port Adelaide Football Club, has ventured across the border and announced new partnerships in Tennant Creek and Alice Springs.

Students in Tennant Creek and the Barkly Region will participate in the WillPOWER program this year, a program designed to encourage primary school children to attend school, lead a healthy lifestyle and set goals for the future. The program will also address cultural identity, resilience and leadership.

The students from the Barkly Region who successfully complete modules in the WillPOWER program will be visited by Jake Neade during the season, the young Power recruit from Elliott, NT. The students will also be invited to the Power v Melbourne game in Alice Springs on May 31.

Gavin Wanganeen visited both Tennant Creek and Alice Springs to launch the program with Simon Forrest (Chair of Power Community Ltd), Darren Adamson (General Manager) and Paul Vandenbergh (Aboriginal Programs Manager).

The visits included sessions at the Clontarf Academies in Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, where Aboriginal students in years 8-12 listened intently as Wanganeen explained his pathway into the AFL, his approach to leadership and his career in the fitness industry post AFL.

The expansion of Power Community Ltd into Central Australia is due to many new partnerships and we thank Scriven Exploration, Group Training NT, NT Education, Barkly Regional Council, Elliott Local Board, Anyinginyi Health Aboriginal Corporation, The Elliott Store and Tennant and District Times – we are kicking goals together.