Port Adelaide young gun Sam Powell-Pepper fit to face North Melbourne this Saturday, says Hartlett

HAMISH Hartlett has described Port Adelaide teammate Sam Powell-Pepper as a “beast” and offered an injury update on the Rising Star candidate.

Port Adelaide’s Sam Powell-Pepper leaves the field after injuring his shoulder during the Power’s victory over West Coast in Perth on Sunday. Picture: Will Russell/AFL Media/Getty Images

HAMISH Hartlett has described Port Adelaide teammate Sam Powell-Pepper as a “beast” and says the young gun will be fit to face North Melbourne this Saturday.

Powell-Pepper left the field during the second quarter of the Power’s 32-point win over West Coast on Sunday after injuring his shoulder in a trademark crunching tackle.

The big-bodied teenager returned to the field with his arm strapped, but played out the remainder of the game to help Port move to fourth on the ladder.

Hartlett said Powell-Pepper had trained on Tuesday and would line up against the Kangaroos at Adelaide Oval on the weekend.

Hamish Hartlett celebrates with Port Adelaide teammate Robbie Gray after kicking a goal against West Coast on the weekend. Picture: Photo by Will Russell/AFL Media/Getty Images

“He’s an absolute beast,” Hartlett told Triple M on Wednesday.

“The way he came back on after he strapped it (his shoulder) up and kept trying to crash in.

“He’s just an animal (and) he loves that physical side of the game.

“I think he’s got a small AC joint sprain, but ... usually you can get away with those types of injuries no worries.

“He’ll be fine for this weekend which is really good for us.”

Port has generally struggled against fellow top-eight sides this season, despite boasting a 9-6 record.

Hartlett, one of the Power’s best against the Eagles, said maintaining clear minds was crucial on Sunday after the scores were level at three-quarter time.

“We’d been in similar situations in games earlier on in the year and probably haven’t run over the top of teams or come away with the result we would have liked,” the midfielder said.

“We actually made a bit of a focus of that throughout the week.

“It was really just continuing to play your role when you can get a bit fuzzy in the mind, the scoreboard is close, there’s a lot of pressure on, the crowd is getting a bit louder.

“We felt like as a group we did that for most of the last quarter and that got us the result that we got.”

Originally published as Port Adelaide young gun Sam Powell-Pepper fit to face North Melbourne this Saturday, says Hartlett