Port Adelaide forward Mitch Georgiades on how he plans to beat West Coast ‘competitive beast’ Reuben Ginbey

Movement over muscle. That’s the mantra for Port Adelaide spearhead Mitch Georgiades as he plots to get the upper hand over “competitive beast” Reuben Ginbey in what shapes as a pivotal match-up on Sunday. The West Aussie rivals are set to renew hostilities at Adelaide Oval, only a few weeks after the Power forward kicked six goals in a 73-point pre-season thumping in Perth. Ginbey — who is reportedly in talks to extend his contract beyond 2027 — did not feature in that clash but is almost certain to get the match-up against the club’s two-time reigning leading goal kicker after he stepped up in the Eagles’ drought-breaking victory over North Melbourne. Georgiades, who kicked two goals from nine marks in Port’s victory over Essendon last weekend, said he couldn’t allow the hulking Ginbey to play to his strengths. “I’ve played on Reuben a couple of times now, and he’s a competitive beast. He’s really strong, and in a straight line, he can get you done,” he told The West Australian. “For me, it’s acknowledging his strengths and then using mine to expose him in ways. So for me it’s all about movement. I’m going to try to stay as active as possible, get up and down the ground to try to challenge him that way. “That’s the way for me more often than not against most defenders I play on, but it’s always a great challenge against Reuben.” Georgiades is the focal point of a non-traditional forward line at the Power that relies heavily on athleticism rather than brute power. “As a forward line in general, we’re pretty mobile, we’re not particularly big, so for us it’s about creating as much movement as possible, and we’re quite reliant on the ball up the ground as well, which is influenced by our movements,” Georgiades said. “We’re learning each week that we go out. It’s a new forward line. Even with Corey Durdin, Jack Whitlock, Jack Lukosius, and Jason (Horne-Francis), there’s a lot of new pieces. “We’re learning each week, and I think we’re starting to complement each other well.” Horne-Francis torched the Eagles for three goals among 27 disposals in their most recent meeting last year and is likely to be in line for additional midfield time in the wake of Connor Rozee’s hamstring injury. The former top draft pick is a key to his team’s success when finding plenty of the footy. The Power have lost just once in the 13 games when he’s racked up 26 disposals or more. “He’s such an explosive player, and he’s still so young. He’s still a raw talent, and he’s had an interrupted pre-season as well, so he’s only been going for a couple of months now,” Georgiades said. “You see what he does on the weekend, it’s pretty special. “No single person plays a great game every week, but he’s still learning, trying to become more consistent in his performances, but also we know how damaging he can be when he gets up and going.” Fellow star midfielder Zak Butters will captain the Power on Sunday in Rozee’s absence.