Port Adelaide's goal-kicking capabilities have been reinforced in two stunning September wins, but Hawthorn defender Josh Gibson is confident his team has the versatility to quell a Power uprising.
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In Jay Schulz, the Power has one of the premier marking talls in the league, Justin Westhoff is a dangerous swingman, while small forwards Chad Wingard, Angus Monfries and Robbie Gray can create havoc in the air and with their smarts and pace when the ball hits the turf.
Gibson, who generally lines up on what he calls a "gorilla", said the Hawks' defence had the right personnel to tame the Power.
"They have a different mix, as do we. We have been able to cater for smalls and talls at different stages during the year. They are going to be the same," Gibson said on Tuesday.
"If you just put all of your work into the tall forwards, their smalls bob up and vice versa. They are a super-talented forward line, but I think we have got a really good mix back down there that can cater for that."
Gray, Wingard and Monfries contributed nine goals when the teams met in their only clash of the home-and-away season, in round 10. The Power survived that night at the Adelaide Oval, with skipper Travis Boak, Brad Ebert, Jared Polec, Ollie Wines, Kane Cornes and Wingard among their best.
While the Hawks have been the league's most potent side, the Power was ranked second for points scored, and led the league in inside-50 entries.
The Hawks know they cannot allow the Power to generate run from half-back and dominate through the middle of the ground.
The Power players showed just how damaging they could be in this area during their second-half surge against Fremantle in last weekend's semi-final, having trailed by 31 points late in the second term.
What this also demonstrated to Gibson was just how mentally strong the Power are.
"You learn that mentally they are a tough side. It's a really tough place to play footy over there [in Perth]," he said.
"To come back from the way they were, the crowd gets involved there - it can be pretty daunting. They have great resilience and they are a well-skilled side."
Where the Hawks will certainly have an edge is in knowing how to handle the big moments that await on Saturday. This will be their fourth straight preliminary final, while it's the first time the Power has been alive this deep into a season since 2007.
"We have a lot of guys who have finals experience and are used to this situation. It eases the mind and just allows you to go in and focus on the job at hand and not worry about other things, like crowds and those little things that can put you off," Gibson said.
However, as Gibson noted, the Power's "football has been speaking for itself lately".
Cyril Rioli must continue to prove he has overcome a hamstring strain, with Gibson saying a final call about whether the potential match-winner would return had yet to be made.
"There's no saying he's playing yet, we're not saying he's not. There's still plenty of days before we have to select the side," he said.
"Everything in our camp doesn't rely on Cyril playing, but if he's out there it's a fantastic boost for the club.
"I don't think it's a disruption. If he gets the all clear from the docs and the fitness staff to play, and his hamstring's fine, then you'd pick Cyril Rioli in your team. The only time it can cause disruption is if we were taking him in injured."
