STARING down the barrel of a tougher draw in 2025, Port Adelaide is keen to match itself with the best in the competition.
The Power were the surprise success story of the 2024 NAB AFLW season, rattling off an astonishing eight wins in a row – including two knockout finals – on their way to an eventual heavy 57-point preliminary final defeat at the hands of eventual premier North Melbourne.
Lauren Arnell's side had finished 15th in 2023, and is under no illusions that it benefited from a friendlier fixture last year as a consequence.
"We spoke briefly about it (on Monday). We certainly have aspirations to be consistently more competitive with like North and Brisbane and teams like that, I think that'll be a major goal for us this year," spearhead Julia Teakle told reporters on the first day of pre-season training.
"Very impressed with all the girls, how they've come back. It definitely shows, another off-season under our belts. Given for some of us, it was our fourth off-season, just being able to be consistent and building on what we already have – the girls have come back in great shape.
"I wouldn't say there's much (extra) expectation at all. We've always been quite in-house, and we're focusing more on that, rather than the external expectation.
"(But) I think it definitely gives us a sense of confidence, that we're capable of that. I think for us, it shows that we are around the mark, and it's just to keep building on that."
Port Adelaide opted not to field players in the SANFLW competition during this year's off-season.
Along with Brisbane, cross-town rival Adelaide participated in three scratch matches against Sydney, while St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs have heavily utilised their VFLW sides.
"For me personally, I've preferred to just get the body right, rather than put the body at risk, [and] getting stronger rather than having to rush back to games," Teakle said.
"Obviously it's nice to get some match play in, but it's probably just a bit too early for us to get stuck into game play."
Port Adelaide has three players on the comeback from torn ACLs, with Teakle saying she expected to see skipper Janelle Cuthbertson return at the start of the season.
Versatile tall Indy Tahau and superstar junior Lauren Young (yet to debut) worked alongside the veteran in their rehab from knee reconstructions.
"[Cuthbertson's] been training well and getting back on the track. We'll see how that goes," Teakle said.
"I've only seen snippets of Lauren Young, just from her array of highlights, we're super keen to get her back and up and running. She's been on the park training really well, so we can't wait."
Star ruck Matilda Scholz came away from last season considerably richer after securing both the Telstra AFLW Rising Star Award ($20,000 portfolio) and the Virgin Australia AFLW Mark of the Year ($50,000 and two million frequent flier points).
"We hang out a fair bit outside (of footy), so I'm hoping she'll shout me a few coffees," Teakle said with a grin.
"I don't think there's any limits for Matilda, she's had another great off-season under her belt. She's so strong in the gym and works super hard doing extras all the time, so I think she really sets the tone for the young group we've got."
