Port Adelaide’s new brand of Sydney-like AFL football has made a mark on Swans coach John Longmire.

Contested possessions, midfield structures, stoppages and clearances were the buzzwords coming from Alberton over the summer.

And the Power have put words into action, showing they are a different side to the one that won only three games and barely avoided the wooden spoon in 2011.

Longmire, whose charges are known for their attack on the ball and haven’t lost to the Power since 2006, has done his homework ahead of Saturday’s clash in Adelaide.

Port’s turnaround in form has been well noted.

“They’ll take some beating,” Longmire said on Thursday.

“We see Port Adelaide as being huge improvers. They’re No.1 in the competition for stoppages – that’s the difference (between now and last year).

“I know we’re only two weeks in, but it’s a significant difference that they’ve been able to implement over the pre-season.

“So we look at Port Adelaide as a tough team to beat, they’ve got their tail up a little bit so they’ll take some handling.”

Sydney are likely to be boosted by the return of gun ruckman Shane Mumford, a late withdrawal from the side’s last-start win over Fremantle due to a back injury.

Mumford’s inclusion was one of three changes to the side that downed the Dockers by 13 points.

“Mumford got through training and probably did a bit more than we expected and felt really good, so if he pulls up OK he should be right,” Longmire said.

“We are expecting him to pull up well and be OK to play.

“Hopefully, we don’t get any last-minute phone calls (like last Saturday).”

Andrejs Everitt and Jesse White were also included, with Nick Smith (ear infection) and Lewis Roberts-Thomson (broken cheek) unavailable and Mark Seaby dropped.

The fixture will be Adam Goodes’ 303rd AFL game, meaning he equals friend Michael O’Loughlin’s club record of matches for the Swans.

“I think there’ll be a bit more of an impact and hoo-ha about it next week (when he breaks the record),” defender Rhyce Shaw said.

“But I know what Goodesy’s like, he just plays every game like it’s his last.

“He’ll be looking forward to the challenge this week, not worrying too much about individual stuff.”

Longmire suggested quelling the Power’s capacity to open with a flurry of goals would be amongst the keys to victory.

“The last two weeks they’ve kicked five goals in the first quarter,” he said.

“They’ve gotten off to really good starts, so that’s something else we’ll have to be mindful of.”