Jiangwan Sports Centre, where Melbourne and Brisbane played an exhibition game in 2010 and where Port and Gold Coast will play for premiership points in round eight. Credit:Getty Images "Fortunately I guess, my four years working with the Socceroos, we played in Asia a lot. The thing that really gets you is the time difference, and the time difference between here and Shanghai is not that much - about two hours," he said. "We are OK. We are not that stressed about it. For most of the guys, it is a 13 or 14-hour flight. You are in a different city and it's going to be a lot hotter, which is going to be a factor. We will be in winter over here. "The two things that we are mainly attempting to combat are the 13-hour flight as well as the heat. We will get over there pretty early, on the Tuesday and Wednesday, so our guys can acclimatise to the conditions. We will just take it pretty easy when we get there." Players will be encouraged to wear compression gear on the flight, and can expect to be disturbed when settling into a movie and told to go for a walk.

"We will be annoying them - they will be in the middle of a movie and I'll be tapping them on the shoulder, so there will be that sort of thing," Burgess said. "The main strategies will be once we get there, just to make sure they have recovered and mobilise their backs and things like that." Burgess said the Power were preparing for 30-degree temperatures - the early forecast is for a top of 25 degrees - while the air quality was "not that flash". "That will take some getting used to but that we are there four days beforehand, we should be okay," he said. According to the China Business News, the Shanghai Environmental Protection Bureau last year released plans to cut the number of private cars and business emissions and build more parks in a city of 24 million. However, the pollution is not as bad as in the capital of Beijing.

Burgess, who recently conducted a wellness tour to China in partnership with Herbalife Nutrition, said the Power would resist turning to air filters, for they could not be used during the match. Food and snacks will be part of the cargo but Burgess has sourced quality local food, although he admits there is a risk of sickness unless hygiene is maintained. "We are taking a fair bit over. I have been over there probably four or five times in the last year and a half, so we have been able to source some pretty good food providers," he said. "The hotel we are staying at has been good - they have sourced some really appropriate food. There is always a risk, absolutely a risk, but we hope we minimise that as much as we can." Tickets for the first home-and away clash outside of Australia and New Zealand for four points are sold out, with more than 5000 Power fans expected to make the trip.