Jason Horne-Francis admits that his off-season trip with Port Adelaide veteran Travis Boak was an eye-opener.
Prior to 2024, Horne-Francis had never truly had a full summer to get himself fit, so he travelled to the US with Boak for two and a half weeks of heavy training.
After working hard on his body and professionalism alongside Boak throughout the trip, Horne-Francis feels he now understands what it takes to be great as the hard work begins to pay off on the field.
“I think my body is in the best position it has been in,” Horne-Francis said on SEN SA Breakfast.
“That trip with Trav really set my season up. I learned a lot about professionalism and how Trav treats his body.
“The main thing was how he trains and how hard he trains. So, I guess it was a bit of an eye-opener on how hard you need to work to be the best and Trav is one of the best.
“It was a really good trip and I got to learn a lot of things and the experiences over there as well were awesome.
“I think it set my season up really well.”
Horne-Francis has seen big rises in his averages for disposals (21.3), clearances (6.2), inside 50s (4.7) and marks (4.3) a game compared to 2023.
While there’s no doubt he’s reaching new heights, the 20-year-old is simply trying to build consistency from week to week as he hopes to play his role alongside Connor Rozee and Zak Butters in a star-studded midfield.
“I think I'm in a good position,” Horne-Francis said.
“Connor and Zak take the limelight and I'm just in the background which I love a bit.
“I'm just trying to build some consistency on my season. I think I've had moments but I’m definitely just trying to build that consistency throughout a whole game.
“I think I did it in the Essendon game … that's what I'm trying to build at the moment.
“We’ve got a great group and a great midfield that I think I can thrive in.”
Horne-Francis and the Power next face the Cats at GMHBA Stadium on Friday night.
While they’ve lost two of their last three, Horne-Francis thinks that the Power can get the job done against the 7-1 Cats on their home turf if they can get their game style going.
“It’s going to be a very exciting game,” Horne-Francis said.
“We know how good clubs like Geelong play their ground, so we need to adjust to how they play, and we need to get our ball movement going.
“But I think that that shouldn't worry us because if we play our play our way and play our style, we should be alright.”
Port Adelaide haven’t won at GMHBA Stadium since Round 21, 2007. They have lost in their last nine attempts at the venue.
