PORT ADELAIDE forward Gemma Houghton has used the 10-week pre-season to concentrate on form, fitness and her connection with her teammates.
Ahead of the AFLW side’s first official pre-season practice match, Houghton spoke to the Adelaide media on Thursday and discussed her preparation.
“Erin (Phillips) has really helped me in the forward line in terms of my ability and where I can take my game,” Houghton said.
“The last 10 weeks, I’ve been working really hard and getting back to the best form I can. All my teammates here have supported me and helped me to be the best player I can be and I can’t wait to produce that at Port Adelaide.”
Houghton was full of praise for skipper Phillips and is looking forward to welcoming her back onto the field this Saturday.
“I’m very excited to run out with Erin,” she said.
“My first ever football game was in Darwin against the Adelaide Crows and I got a photo with Erin and (now) to be able to run out with her, and her leading this group and this club is really an important moment for all of us. It will be almost a dream come true for me to run out with Erin and play in the same forward line as her.”
Some of the most important themes to building Port Adelaide’s AFLW group have been culture and connection, two things that head coach Lauren Arnell and list manager Naomi Maidment have worked hard to establish.
“The club has drafted on character and we’ve got an amazing group here,” Houghton said.
“We want to be competitive and we want to be hard at the ball. We don’t want to be treated any differently given we are a new side into the competition. I think we will bring that pressure and we will bring that contest.”
Looking ahead to taking on Essendon at The Hangar on Saturday, the 28-year-old is focused on a combination of getting processes in place and looking out for her team.
“It will be our first trip away, so we just want to make sure all of us are coming together, getting around each other, supporting each other and getting everything right ahead of round one,” she said.
“The mood around the group is really excited. Obviously our first hit-out on the weekend (against the Crows) went really well and then we’ve got another one against Essendon. I think the girls just can’t wait to get out there and get on the jumper and hit the ground running.
“I think we will go into every game believing that we can win it and we will take it game by game. We’ve got a very competitive group and some very talented players, so our main focus is building that connection and that culture and (making sure) that we’re a competitive side and we stand for nothing less.”
Port Adelaide’s practice match against Essendon will be live-streamed at www.portadelaidefc.com.au from 11:30am ACST on Saturday.
