Port Adelaide's AFLW team will wear the club's iconic 'Prison Bars' heritage guernsey in the 2024 AFLW Showdown held at Alberton Oval next month.
Scheduled for Saturday, August 31 and under lights on the Powers' home deck for the first time, it will be the third all-South Australian AFLW clash, adding to one of the biggest rivalries in the competition.
The Prison Bar guernsey holds significant historical value for the club, symbolising the heritage and connection to the club's SANFL reign.
Born in 1870, Port Adelaide is the fifth oldest club and the guernsey symbolises everything that has come before it, with over 150 years of history enriched within the guernsey.
Worn by Port Adelaide's AFL team, the iconic guernsey will now be donned by the AFLW side, making for another significant chapter in the club's history.
AFLW captain Janelle Cuthbertson said she is honoured to wear the Prison Bars and values its significance deeply.
โIt is with an enormous sense of pride and responsibility that we will wear the Prison Bar Guernsey for our home Showdown this year,โ Cuthbertson said.
โAs a playing group, we embrace the history of this club and are so proud to honour those who came before us by wearing this guernsey.
โThis guernsey represents Port Adelaide's incredible history of sustained success in the SANFL that ultimately saw the club elevated to the national stage. Without the success in this guernsey, both our men's and women's teams wouldn't be playing in the national competition today. That is not lost on our playing group.
โWe know how much the jumper means to the wider Port Adelaide community and we can't wait to run out wearing it in Round 1 at Alberton Oval.โ
Port Adelaide Chief Executive Matthew Richardson said that for the AFLW team to wear the historical guernsey will mark another significant moment in the club's history.
โThe Prison Bar guernsey is a significant part of our club heritage and for our AFLW team to wear it for the first time at Alberton Oval will be a special moment that I know our players are greatly looking forward to,โ Mr Richardson said.
โFor our AFLW team to wear the guernsey for the first time brings our three football programs together and reinforces the significance of this guernsey for our club and our people.โ
In Round 23 against the Crows, the Power's AFL side will once again don the Prison Bars, with Port Adelaide AFL captain Connor Rozee expressing how proud he is to see the club united by this iconic symbol.
โWe can't wait to wear the Prison Bar guernsey again this year,โ Rozee said.
โIt's a symbol of where we have come from, and it's such a privilege to pay respect to that history.
โI am really excited to watch our AFLW team wear the Prison Bars and look forward to supporting them in the season ahead.โ
Port Adelaide's AFLW side is deep into pre-season, with a month left until the opening round to commence the club's third season in the AFLW competition. The Power will be hoping to make their first-ever AFLW final series in 2024.
