Their slogan for this year may be "live the creed" but Port Adelaide will make a pronounced break from club tradition in 2009 by training at AAMI Stadium every week of the AFL season.

Since their entry to the competition in 1997, Port have always trained at Alberton Oval in preparation for road fixtures, only traversing the turf of their home ground in weeks when the team would play at West Lakes.

However, a nightmarish home record last year - the Power won only three of 12 matches at AAMI - led Port's brainstrust to conclude that greater time at AAMI Stadium would be worthwhile.

Josh Carr, back at Port after four years with Fremantle, agreed the players would benefit from the change.

"I think every minute you get to train on the ground is definitely going to help, we're only just down the road from Alberton anyway if we need to go back for anything, for any meetings or anything like that so it probably will help," Carr said on Wednesday.

"It's about getting used to the oval, the size and the surroundings with the stands and the wind."

The Power's first home assignment for the year will be Essendon, who under the tutelage of Matthew Knights have shown signs they will abandon the risky, open football of the past for more of a zoning style of play.

Carr said he expected as much from the Bombers, counselling Port's supporters to be patient on Sunday.

"They've had a pretty good pre-season and they've got a lot of fairly quick guys through the centre there," Carr said.

"We know what they're going to bring and I think they play a pretty exciting brand of football as well so we've got to try to nullify that."

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