Port Adelaide's Powell-Pepper out for season with ACL

The injured Sam Powell-Pepper talks to Power coach Ken Hinkley after his knee knock. (Matt Turner/AAP PHOTOS)

Port Adelaide's Sam Powell-Pepper is out for the AFL season after scans confirmed the pressure forward ruptured his ACL. 

Powell-Pepper left the field during the third quarter of Port's 11.16 (82) to 10.12 (72) win over St Kilda at Adelaide Oval on Friday night.

The club confirmed the injury on Saturday, saying he would miss the remainder of the year and undergo surgery to repair his knee ligament in coming days.

Nasty injury
Powell-Pepper after going down with what Hinkley called a "nasty" injury.

"We are incredibly disappointed for Sam," Port Adelaide's head of medical services Tim O'Leary said.

"Sam is a dedicated and diligent athlete who attacks his training with unrelenting intensity and will no doubt approach his rehab the same way.

"He will continue to be as involved as he can, as a leader and important member of our playing group.

"It's such a tough injury for a footballer to go through. We're all behind him and we know he'll come out the other side stronger and more determined."

Powell-Pepper was only playing his third game since serving a four-match suspension for a high bump during a pre-season hitout.

In a further blow, Port Adelaide captain Connor Rozee faces a battle to be fit for Thursday's Showdown after the club confirmed he suffered a low-grade hamstring strain. 

The 24-year-old will be assessed during the week. 

The Power will be without Aliir Aliir for the clash against the Crows at Adelaide Oval after the key defender was concussed against St Kilda. 

Aliir has been placed into concussion protocols after a tackle by St Kilda small forward Jack Higgins in the second term.

Higgins faces a nervous wait to learn if he will be cited by the match review officer for a dangerous tackle.

St Kilda coach Ross Lyon said he had not seen the incident.

"There's great processes and structures within the AFL and the game so everything gets taken care of in the end," Lyon said.

Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley said he feared worst when Powell-Pepper went down.

"When you hurt your knee, and can’t go back on, my history in the game and the amount of times I’ve seen those sort of things happen, it lends itself towards possibly being an ACL," Hinkley said post-match.

License this article

What is AAPNews?

For the first time, Australian Associated Press is delivering news straight to the consumer.

No ads. No spin. News straight-up.

Not only do you get to enjoy high-quality news delivered straight to your desktop or device, you do so in the knowledge you are supporting media diversity in Australia.

AAP Is Australia’s only independent newswire service, free from political and commercial influence, producing fact-based public interest journalism across a range of topics including politics, courts, sport, finance and entertainment.

What is AAPNews?
The Morning Wire

Wake up to AAPNews’ morning news bulletin delivered straight to your inbox or mobile device, bringing you up to speed with all that has happened overnight at home and abroad, as well as setting you up what the day has in store.

AAPNews Morning Wire
AAPNews Breaking News
Breaking News

Be the first to know when major breaking news happens.


Notifications will be sent to your device whenever a big story breaks, ensuring you are never in the dark when the talking points happen.

Focused Content

Enjoy the best of AAP’s specialised Topics in Focus. AAP has reporters dedicated to bringing you hard news and feature content across a range of specialised topics including Environment, Agriculture, Future Economies, Arts and Refugee Issues.

AAPNews Focussed Content
Subscription Plans

Choose the plan that best fits your needs. AAPNews offers two basic subscriptions, all billed monthly.

Once you sign up, you will have seven days to test out the service before being billed.

AAPNews Full Access Plan
Full Access
AU$10
  • Enjoy all that AAPNews has to offer
  • Access to breaking news notifications and bulletins
  • Includes access to all AAPNews’ specialised topics
Join Now
AAPNews Student Access Plan
Student Access
AU$5
  • Gain access via a verified student email account
  • Enjoy all the benefits of the ‘Full Access’ plan at a reduced rate
  • Subscription renews each month
Join Now
AAPNews Annual Access Plan
Annual Access
AU$99
  • All the benefits of the 'Full Access' subscription at a discounted rate
  • Subscription automatically renews after 12 months
Join Now

AAPNews also offers enterprise deals for businesses so you can provide an AAPNews account for your team, organisation or customers. Click here to contact AAP to sign-up your business today.

SEVEN DAYS FREE
Download the app
Download AAPNews on the App StoreDownload AAPNews on the Google Play Store