Ollie Wines’ message to Port Adelaide Power fans: Don’t worry about contract
OLLIE Wines has given the strongest indication yet he will remain at Alberton beyond the 2018 season.
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OLLIE Wines has given the strongest indication yet he will remain at Port Adelaide beyond the 2018 season.
Ahead of the Power’s Round 1 clash against Fremantle at Adelaide Oval on Saturday, the vice-captain said contract talks were ongoing but Port fans had no reason to be worried.
“I’m really comfortable where I’m at the club,” Wines said on FIVEaa radio on Friday morning.
“I love this footy club and I feel privileged that I was drafted here and to be able to pull the jumper on each week.
“There’s no reason supporters should be worried.”
The midfield bull, who was drafted from Echuca in 2012, comes out of contract at season’s end and is already attracting interest from rival clubs from his home state.
And while in no rush to put pen to paper soon, he said he wouldn’t leave it until the end of the season.
“The contract, I’ve got another six to seven months to run on it. I’ve tried to make that pretty clear. At no stage am I going to rush into signing anything too soon.
“It probably won’t wait til the end. The previous two contracts I’ve signed I’ve woken up one morning and said ‘Let’s sign it’. As I see my parents a little bit more when they start coming over for games and we catch up, it won’t be too far away I wouldn’t have thought.”
After a much-hyped preseason following some frenzied activity at the trade table, the Power has included four new faces in the side to take on the Dockers in the season opener, with Tom Rockliff, Jack Watts, Steven Motlop and Dom Barry set to make their club debuts.
Wines expected the mature-age stars to have an instant impact.
“The three big names that got a lot of media attention — Watts, Rockliff and Motlop — as a team, I think they will add a lot to us.
“Our area that we really needed to work on last year was our conversion going inside 50. Those three guys are elite ball users. They finish on the scoreboard and I think they can really further us in that area.”
The new-look Port Adelaide side, which had an open training session at Adelaide Oval on Friday morning, will go into the match a raging $1.24 favourite with Ladbrokes, but Wines said the Power would not be taking Fremantle lightly.
“I think this year is going to be so tight. We saw last year and the previous year, Richmond and Western Bulldogs came out of perhaps nowhere, anyone’s a chance. Last night (Richmond and Carlton game) proved that.
“Freo has strong form coming out of the preseason comp. They took Adelaide nearly all the way at Strathalbyn and then did a number on West Coast so they’ve got some really good form.
“They obviously have one of the best players in the comp in Nat Fyfe, players around him like Lachie Neale and (Aaron) Sandilands in the midfield. Don’t worry, we’re not taking them lightly.”
The vice-captain said the team had watched replays of their heartbreaking extra-time elimination final defeat several times as a group for motivation and the players had put high expectations on themselves.
“We expect to play finals this year. That’s a non-negotiable for us. If that takes us to the top four then it does. We’re aiming to split the season in two in a way. Obviously we have to qualify for finals, then finals is its own little thing in itself.”
Originally published as Ollie Wines’ message to Port Adelaide Power fans: Don’t worry about contract