Keith Thomas (KT) - CEO

[Power_Knight_1]

Not sure if Keith Thomas has his own thread (or if he got any one in the Buddy draft) but i think because he has done so much for our club he deserves one. he keeps us informed via his messages from the CEO (which is more than most other CEO's). He is good support for Kochie and He has shown he would fight for the Power (and he is so important for us)

There has been other messages but here is his latest message (from the 23 Aug)

http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/2013-08-23/from-the-ceo-august-23

From the CEO: August 23

By Keith ThomasExclusive to portadelaidefc.com.au 9:38am AEST Friday, August 23, 2013
Keith Thomas

We must provide Ken Hinkley and the AFL program with a best practice development structure to maximise our Club's performance in the AFL
Keith Thomas​

Dear Members and Supporters,

The past few weeks have been consumed by the debate as to whether or not the two Adelaide AFL Clubs should be allowed to enter support teams into the SANFL competition, and if so, what conditions should be applied to ensure that such a move benefits all parties concerned.

Since my last CEO update, a few significant developments have occurred.

-The Adelaide Football Club has been granted entry into the SANFL, under a set of conditions which they have agreed to.

- The SANFL has informed Port Adelaide that it is in a position to invite us to promote a PAFC support team on the same terms and conditions as those applied to the Adelaide Football Club. Such approval would require Port Adelaide to dismantle its junior program and recruitment zone, and embrace the top up system as applied to AFC. It has requested that we indicate whether we wish to enter a team under those conditions.

We have responded to the SANFL, reaffirming that we would not be prepared to enter a PAFC support team in the SANFL under the same conditions as the Adelaide Football Club, preferring to maintain our status quo position for season 2014.

We are still seeking to create a future Port Adelaide structure that achieves the following:

- Provides our Club with the best possible chance to win AFL premierships.
- Ensures that the Magpies are retained, fiercely competitive and intent on winning premierships.
- Provides a pathway for junior footballers to develop their skills and love of the game at Port Adelaide, enabling them to ultimately realise their dream of playing league football for the Magpies, or if they are good enough, get drafted into the AFL competition.

Next Steps
The SANFL and its Clubs need to decide whether they wish to invite us to re-join their competition under a new set of Port Adelaide-specific conditions which would enable us to achieve the above criteria.

If not, we will prepare for season 2014 to be status quo as previously stated, and use next year to develop an alternative plan for season 2015 and beyond.

On a brighter note, congratulations to Brett Ebert on an outstanding career. The way he handled his retirement was a credit to him and his family, and we plan to duly honour Brett’s achievements at our next home game.

Just on that, the Carlton game is one not to be missed!

I know every Port Adelaide supporter is aware of its significance to our season, but it’s going to be a cracking event with a pre match Legends game, the Power boys playing in the traditional Port Adelaide strip, live music at the ground and heaps more.
I will be back in touch next week.

KT

 

[Power_Knight_1]

here is the next message from the CEO (from the club web site)

http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/2013-08-28/from-the-ceo-august-28
From the CEO: August 28

By Keith ThomasExclusive to portadelaidefc.com.au 8:03pm AEST Wednesday, August 28, 2013

Dear Members and Supporters,

You’re probably sick to death of this topic, but I thought another quick update on the AFL reserves saga may be in order given the recent media attention it has been given.

The SANFL are currently formulating a new set of entry conditions for Port Adelaide to consider, if it were to enter a support team for its AFL side into the SANFL competition. This work commenced after we rejected the set of conditions originally offered, which were identical to those accepted by the Crows, but incompatible to our specific needs and criteria.

The SANFL are discussing this new offer with their Clubs this week, to enable the PAFC Board to consider the invitation at its scheduled meeting on Friday.

At this stage, we don’t know what these conditions will look like, or whether they will suit our requirements. If the SANFL’s revised offer doesn’t work for us, we will maintain the status quo position for 2014 as previously stated.

I think it’s really important that we finalise this matter, as it has been very disruptive to the Magpie lads in particular. I spoke as candidly as I could to both the Senior and Junior players last week, but as each week drags on I’m sure it’s becoming more of a distraction.

I will send you the final word on this matter by the end of the week.

Regards
Keith Thomas
CEO - Port Adelaide Football Club

 

[Power_Knight_1]

http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/2013-09-05/from-the-ceo-5-september

From the CEO: 5 September

By Keith ThomasExclusive to portadelaidefc.com.au 5:47pm AEST Thursday, September 5, 2013

Dear Members and Supporters,

The SANFL Club Directors have today agreed upon a final proposal which would enable the Port Adelaide Football Club’s non-selected AFL listed players to represent the Magpies in the SANFL from season 2014. This proposal has been presented to Port Adelaide today for consideration.

I’m sure this issue will demand some media attention across the next few days, but I don’t intend to provide a running commentary on the matter as there is still some complex detail to be worked through and we do have a couple of important games to play on the weekend!

Given the significance of the proposal to the future of our Club, members and supporters are invited to an information session at the Club’s Indoor Facility on Monday 9 September at 5.30pm where all will be revealed! I’d ask that you reserve judgement until then.

The Port Adelaide Football Club Board will meet on Tuesday 10 September to formally consider the proposal.

Summary
We need to consider the model carefully. It requires us to think differently about our football program going forward.

We will be assessing it against the following criteria:
- The model must ensure all Port Adelaide players play for Port Adelaide
- The Power must have the development structure they need.
- The Magpies must remain strong and competitive
- Kids must be able to grow up and play for Port Adelaide in an elite environment
- Our community links must be retained and strengthened where possible.

Let’s get together and talk about this on Monday night. If you can’t get to Alberton, send me your thoughts. I’m keen to hear what you think. On Tuesday, the PAFC Board will formally consider the proposal. Good luck to all on the weekend, and see you here on Monday.

Cheers,
KT

 

[Power_Knight_1]

from the club web site ...

http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/2013-09-09/from-the-ceo-aflsanfl-magpies-update

From the CEO: AFL/SANFL Magpies update

By Keith Thomas

I think this is a really good model that will help ensure a competitive Magpies team in the SANFL and help to keep our proud state league as the second-best competition outside of the AFL.
Keith Thomas, Port Adelaide CEO​

Dear Members and supporters,

Tonight members of the Port Adelaide football community attended a special information evening at Alberton Oval.

It was a special moment for our club to have so many of our true believers and faithful followers welcomed into the heart of our proud football club to discuss what could be one of the most significant decisions our club makes in our lifetimes.

That decision will be made by our board tomorrow and it will be to answer the question of how our club looks into the future.

To understand our club, you only need look back to last Saturday.

In Melbourne, AFL chief executive Andrew Demetriou was singing the praises of our club – the most successful in the history of senior Australian Football – as our AFL side fought its way to its first finals victory in six years against our old ‘sister club’ Collingwood.

Earlier that day, back in Adelaide, our SANFL boys fought their way back to a fantastic win over our old enemies Glenelg down at the Bay, believing it was their last game in the mighty prison bar guernsey!

Both performances epitomise the spirit of Port Adelaide. Both teams against the odds, displaying a will to win and never say die attitude that has been the envy of sporting clubs all over Australia for 143 years.

No longer should we view our club strictly in terms of Power, or Magpies.

We have never worn the same guernsey or had the same nickname throughout our history, but we have always been Port Adelaide.

We should view ourselves and fight for our future as the Port Adelaide Football Club.

Our current fight is about preserving the very essence of this great club.

Are we prepared to fight this battle together as ‘One Club’ or will we continue to allow outside forces to again drive a wedge into the Port Adelaide community and divide it against itself?

Our club has been compromised since 1997. We’ve paid a heavy price:

- No premierships for the Magpies since 1999
- No finals appearances in the AFL for six years
Before 2010 the proud Magpies were banished to Ethelton, and we know the state the Power has been in since 2007!

That is not what this club is about.

We need to construct a future that enables us to win AFL and SANFL premierships, gives our kids the opportunity to play and play well for Port Adelaide and, perhaps most importantly, be united as a club that is all pulling in one direction.

Without unity, I doubt that we can ever be truly successful again. Notwithstanding all of our grit and determination, it’s simply all too hard out there! We’ve got to be on the same bus.

Tonight I explained to those members in attendance at Alberton everything that we’ve been through over the past four months. This is an emotional issue and, as you read this I do ask that you consider it carefully.

Our original proposal to the SANFL Commission was as follows:
- AFL (Power)
- SANFL League (Magpies)
- SANFL Reserves
- U18, U16, U15-U13 talent squads.
- A reduction of our metro and country zones to 75% of current and
- A salary cap at 25% of current.

Simply put, this was rejected by the commission.

Why? I get the feeling that the SANFL want us to, in a way, be either an AFL or an SANFL club as opposed to an organisation that operates two distinctly separate structures.

At the same time that our proposal was rejected, the Adelaide Football Club submitted a proposal that was subsequently accepted by the SANFL.

We were offered a ‘reserves’ team under those conditions by the SANFL. While many encouraged myself and our chairman to fight to the death on that issue, I have been concerned that a move to dissolve the Magpies’ license on November 1 could be a genuine consideration by the League.

We are not considering the very expensive option of uprooting our club and playing in the VFL competition.

Nor have we considered the possibility of completely throwing the Magpies out the window!

What we have done is worked closely with the SANFL to negotiate a solution that suits the needs of our club and the integrity of their competition.

What the SANFL have come back to us with is the following model:

1. Port Adelaide AFL (playing as the Power)

2. Port Adelaide SANFL League (playing as the Magpies and retaining our traditional guernsey)
This team is made up of those players not selected for the AFL team each week and members from a pool of 15 contracted SANFL-only players. As of today the SANFL has allowed us to contract players to this list without an age-cap. In return, the salary cap for these players has been significantly reduced.

3. Port Adelaide SANFL Reserves (also as the Magpies and wearing the traditional guernsey)
From 2014 onwards this team will be our elite talent academy made up largely of 18-22 year old players. Our pool of 15 League-contracted players will be able to play at this level.

4. A series of youth development academies including a country and indigenous development program, an international player pathway, a father/son academy (much like those used by Victorian AFL clubs) and a metropolitan development program.

In 2014 we are required and will continue to operate junior Magpie teams in the U18, U16 and junior talent squad competitions.

I think this is a really good model that will help ensure a competitive Magpies team in the SANFL and help to keep our proud state league as the second-best competition outside of the AFL. That is something important to all of us.

In return, we will hand back our annual dividend from the SANFL to the competition for a right to maintain this model.

I believe this model was positively received by those members and supporters in attendance tonight.

I hope it will be similarly received by our wider supporter base.

For me the headline is that Port Adelaide is open for business, that we’re the Power in the AFL, the Magpies in the SANFL and, most importantly, we are Port Adelaide.

Our board of directors will vote on this model tomorrow. It has already cleared the SANFL with a 7-1 vote. For me that means that most of the league clubs are supportive of us, understand our commitment to them, and want to have a Magpies side that they can try and beat every week of the year.

If it is passed, we will begin work immediately towards building a football club for every Port Adelaide supporter and working tirelessly to make us truly ‘One Club’

Congratulations again to the Magpies boys on their great win to finish 2013, and make sure you cheer hard for our AFL lads against the Cats on Friday night.

We Are Port Adelaide
KT

 

[Power_Knight_1]

http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/2013-09-19/from-the-ceo-september-19

From the CEO: 19 September
Dear Members and Supporters,

Twelve months ago to the day, the Port Adelaide family gathered at seaside Sorrento in Victoria and at home at Alberton Oval, to honour the life of John McCarthy. It was a defining moment.

Somehow we grew stronger. More resilient. Wiser.

We witnessed the first signs of the year that was to come, in our exhibition match in London against the Bulldogs, way back in early November when the boys staged a miraculous 8 goal comeback to win the European Challenge at The Oval with a late goal from Brad Ebert. On that same trip the first layers of the new plan were being laid down by Hinkley and co. as they spent hours together in Milan and then London constructing the template of a game plan that would ultimately propel the Club into the finals for the first time since 2007.

Off field, a new image was forming for the Club. Through our new Chairman David Koch and coach Ken Hinkley, the language of Port Adelaide began to change. We were positive, confident and spoke of playing a bigger game on the national stage. We declared this team would never, ever give up! We started to look and sound like Port Adelaide again.

Then we secured Renault, and rather than take the safe option and announce the partnership in Adelaide, we stuck a Formula 1 car and a some flash Port Adelaide signs on the MCG and made a statement… we want to play on the biggest stage, so here we are!

By round one, the Port Adelaide family was starting to rumble, so we organised our first ‘March to the G’ from Fed Square ahead of our opening game against Melbourne. We were thrilled with the 600 fans who turned up loud and proud to strut their stuff. The 79 point win surpassed our wildest expectations and we were off and running!

More wins followed, then some losses, and then a big win against Sydney. We were back on track.

The round 14 home game against Collingwood was a highlight. Having broken through the 40,000 member barrier for the first time ever, our members had made an emphatic statement to the football community…Port Adelaide was back! We celebrated by turning up en masse, firstly to try and win the Renault that was on offer, but then to witness an emphatic victory against one of the competition favourites! It was a night to savour, but our year wouldn’t end there.

Two incredible Showdown victories, and a massive 45,000 crowd to witness our last game at AAMI against Carlton were other wonderful highlights on our way to the finals.…we were back at the MCG, this time as a dangerous and legitimate contender. Our second ‘March to the G’ attracted nearly 4000 fans! It was glorious chaos…thank you! And then, what a win!

We backed up our courageous Elimination final win against Collingwood, with a fighting loss to the hardened Geelong side. Another important lesson in the development of our young side.

And yet, despite all of the excitement of our on field exploits, I believe our biggest achievement this year has been the re-engagement of the Port Adelaide community. Remember the family day in February, where the Magpies played the Power and 5000 people turned up to watch. You could feel it there. After every home game we’d have 700- 800 supporters back at the Club, win or lose! At every away game, our interstate Supporter groups were out in force. All year you’ve been buying shirts, caps, scarves, Renaults (!), lottery tickets… you have been incredible! We launched the Premiership fund…and it took off. So much so, that we have been able to purchase a crucial piece of training equipment for the team in our first 6 months of the fund being open.

And we’ve done it in true Port Adelaide style…one in, all in.

We’ve made the entire football community sit up and take notice.

So now we get the chance to go to Adelaide Oval…full of confidence and with momentum.

But just as we are saying to our players, we cannot allow this to be a one off, special effort. This must become, the way we do it. The expectation, not the exception.

We wish the playing group a safe and restful break. They deserve it.

For the rest of us, planning for 2014 continues, as we look forward to further strengthening our entire organisation ahead of our arrival at Adelaide Oval.

From the entire Port Adelaide team, thank you all so much for your full throttle support this year, we have been amazed by your passion and enthusiasm!

We look forward to making you even prouder to be a Port Adelaide supporter next year.

Thanks again,
KT

 

[Power_Knight_1]

another good message to the members from the CEO today about the honour board ...

check out the club web site (or the main bigfooty page)

 

[Power_Knight_1]

from the CEO

http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/2013-11-14/from-the-ceo-november-14

From the CEO: November 14

Keith Thomas November 14, 2013 7:57 PM

Our coaching group is in excellent shape, and we think our needs have shifted slightly from this time last year. We are starting to engage, and be engaged by prospective candidates for what is an exceptional industry opportunity at Port Adelaide.
Keith Thomas​

Dear Members and Supporters,

No doubt you have all been following the developments unfolding over the last few days with interest and, I’m sure, frustration.

Today our former director of coaching and strategy Alan Richardson was announced as the new senior coach of the St Kilda Football Club.

This has been a frantic 48 hours, so let me take you through the process of how this has unfolded.

On Tuesday afternoon, Alan, through the club, issued a statement stating he would not seek an interview for the St Kilda senior coaching position and was firmly committed to our football club.

Late that night, Alan contacted Ken Hinkley to inform him that negotiations undertaken by his manager and the Saints had reached a point where they were prepared to consider interviewing him for their coaching role.

Both contacted me to advise of the sudden development and Alan subsequently flew to Melbourne to finalise the process on Wednesday. This afternoon, St Kilda announced Alan’s appointment at their club, and they’ve got a good man.

We have always prided ourselves on being able to attract and develop good football professionals. I note that the three main candidates for the St Kilda role in Richardson, Williams and Kingsley have all coached our football club in the past five years.

Ultimately, we could not give Alan the prize he wanted and it is unsurprising to all that he should pursue the opportunity the Saints offered him.

This whole process has raised a number of concerns that I want to address for you in this letter:
- Why has our club been impacted by this process and what can be done to stop it in the future?
- What is at risk with a coach deeply embedded in our strategic planning joining a rival club?
- How do we go about replacing Richardson in that role?

Industry coaching appointment processes
There is no denying, we have had our program significantly disrupted by this sudden series of events. St Kilda’s decision to overhaul its coaching panel on the eve of pre-season now means our own preparations have been set back and we now lack an important resource in our football department. Our players commence pre-season training on Monday and we will shortly depart for our training camp in Dubai.

Accordingly, we took a stance today with St Kilda and have submitted an agenda item for next week’s league chief executives’ conference, which will hopefully put in motion new protocols around the appointment of coaching personnel in the future.

To St Kilda’s credit they have acknowledged the difficulties caused by their late start to the process, and we have resolved to move on.

Intellectual Property
Alan is obviously very aware of our football strategy for next year. Every employee of our football club is bound by a confidentiality contract when they depart our organisation, but how can you ‘unknow’ what you know? I have discussed this at length with both Alan and St Kilda’s CEO Michael Nettlefold with whom I have a good relationship, and both have undertaken in good faith that knowledge he has of Port Adelaide will not be used to the advantage of their club, or the detriment of ours. There is little more that we can do on this front, acknowledging that in a small specialised industry such as ours this sort of information gets shared around a lot. The next draft is our primary area of concern and we are very confident that everyone concerned will do the right thing.

Where to from here?
We have already moved on this. Kenny has already changed his focus to how we can get the most out of our boys in 2014 and we are well into the process even now of determining what our exact needs are for 2014. Ken is now one year into his role and we have added enormous experience through Phil Walsh. Our coaching group is in excellent shape, and we think our needs have shifted slightly from this time last year. We are starting to engage, and be engaged by prospective candidates for what is an exceptional industry opportunity at Port Adelaide.

Big picture
This is a small speed hump on our journey towards our next premiership. Alan has served this club well for the last 13 months and has been a significant contributor to our reinvigorated football program and the development of our young leaders. But he was just one person in our organisation.

We Are Port Adelaide and we are smashing it in every aspect of our operations before the start of the pre-season. Here are some key developments that have taken place since my last update:

- Aaron Greaves and Marcus Drum joined the club as our new development coach and player welfare development manager and will work closely with our players next year.

- We have just re-signed two popular young Magpies players to our SANFL list for next year who will work closely with Buddha Hocking in getting the Maggies back to the top. If you see Sam Gray or Bobby Raikiwasa around the club make sure you say hello and congratulate them on signing on. We will make a few more player announcements shortly.

- Jacob Surjan has been promoted to take control of our Academy team for 2014. We all love ‘Surj’ and his passion for our footy club and this is a very well deserved appointment for him. Congratulations mate!

- We’re selling memberships like hotcakes! Over 80% of our Black Diamond and Platinum memberships have been sold for 2014, and we’ve already sold more reserved seats than we did for the entirety of last year! I was also impressed to hear of one passionate supporter in Paris who took out a Platinum membership simply to guarantee his place at the very first game in Round 2!

- Our corporate sales team has been getting its own runs on the board. Only two open-air corporate boxes remain in the Western Stand and they’re selling quickly in the Eastern Stand too!

- We’ve also had a number of our partners sign on. At the premier level Envestra and Rivergum Homes will continue on with us next year, while ROH Wheels and Australian Outdoor Living will continue at principal level.

- Our Ultimate Honour Board has cracked 2700 names and the number is still climbing. Make sure you get your name on the wall of our new players’ race at Adelaide Oval and support the club in the process at pafchonourboard.com.au

- Finally, Adelaide Oval just looks terrific. I’ve been there for meetings with the Stadium Management Authority throughout the entire build process and it is simply a spectacular arena for our city. I can’t express how good this is going to be for our players, our supporters and our whole community next year. All I can really say is that you don’t want to miss this! Give our fantastic member services team a call on 1300 467 232 or get on the website at weareportadelaide.com.au and jump on board next year!

Well that just about wraps it up for a lengthy update, but one that I hope helps you feel a little more comfortable as we approach our pre-season kick off.

Good luck to all of our players with their time trial on Monday morning and to all the new boys starting off with us this month. It’s going to be a big summer for Port Adelaide and we can’t wait to get into it!

Catch you soon,
KT

 

[Ford Fairlane]

How Keith Thomas helped rebuild Port Adelaide

 

[Ant Bear]

From the CEO : January 1, 2014
Dear Members and Supporters,

Happy New Year!

I trust you all had a restful and enjoyable break, and are ready for another huge season.

As we get back into the swing of things for 2014, there are a few things I’d like to keep you updated on.

Pre-season and important dates
Kenny and the boys are back into it and are attacking the pre-season period with the energy and enthusiasm you would expect at this time of the year.

Buddha Hocking’s Magpies squad has also resumed full training in preparation for our first serious on-field assignment for the year - the Family Day internal trial match featuring Power and Magpies players on February 8.

Put this date in your diary, because last year’s event was a ripper, with over 6000 people in attendance. We’ll send out more details shortly.

The other date you might also like to jot down is February 7, which will be our Annual General Meeting. The Port Club AGM will take place between 5.30pm to 6:00pm, followed by the main Port Adelaide Football Club AGM between 6:00pm and 7:00pm. The full Board, Ken and Garry will be in attendance and we look forward to seeing you there.

Welcome Shaun Hart
I’d also like to extend a warm welcome to Shaun Hart who is our new Director of Coaching. Shaun comes to Alberton after a decorated career as a triple premiership player with the Brisbane Lions and the development and NEAFL coach for the Gold Coast Suns. Shaun has been with the Suns since its franchise bid back in 2008 and played 273 games for Brisbane between 1990 and 2004. Shaun and Kenny worked together at the Suns and I know both are keen to resume that relationship again. They, along with our midfield manager Phil Walsh and high performance manager Darren Burgess, will be in charge of getting the boys primed for the big season ahead and I know we’re all looking forward to the results to come.

Approaching season 2014
As we gather momentum for the new season there are several key issues on our minds:

- the successful transition to Adelaide Oval, with particular focus on the opening Showdown.
- the transfer of our licence.
- the successful integration of our AFL and SANFL football programs.
- attracting 50,000 members in 2014.
- improving our Corporate Partnerships further in 2014.

As far as we have come in the past couple of years, we all know this is just the beginning and much still needs to be achieved.

All of these major projects are advancing well, and I will be in a position to update you fully by the end of January as to the progress we have made across the summer break.

Wilbur
This year will also mark the very significant 10-year anniversary of our 2004 Premiership victory. Big plans are being developed to honour this magnificent team and full details will be released soon.

In the meantime, I would like to take this opportunity to draw your attention to the incredible work being done by Michael ‘Wilbur’ Wilson, one of the heroes of the 2004 campaign and a current member of our medical team.

Michael’s mother has stage IV Myelofibrosis, a rare form of blood cancer. He is set to engage in a major fundraising effort over the next three months to support the charity Tour de Cure, who provide support for the Leukaemia Foundation.

As you know, Michael is a fanatical athlete and competitor, and intends to compete in the Melbourne Ironman competition in March as part of this campaign - quite an achievement for a man who has had multiple knee and shoulder reconstructions as a result of his commitment to the Port Adelaide Football Club! As you would expect, the Club will be supporting Michael all the way.

You can read more about Wilbur’s campaign on our website here and if there is any support you can throw Wilbur’s way, I know he will appreciate it. Click here to make a direct donation to his campaign.

As you can see there is a lot to look forward to!

I’d encourage you to get your memberships and seats to Adelaide Oval organised as soon as you can by calling the club on 1300 GO PAFC or weareportadelaide.com.au.

You are not going to want to miss any of the action this year!

KT
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs
Exclusive to portadelaidefc.com.au

 

[Traveling_Power]

from the club web site:-

From the CEO: 12 December
Keith Thomas December 12, 2014 8:00 PM

Keith Thomas speaks at Port Adelaide's 2014 John Cahill Medal best and fairest awards night. (picture: Simon Maiolo)
Dear Members and Supporters,

I’ve been stewing over this note for a couple of weeks now.

Given the remarkable year we’ve enjoyed, I thought we might be able to get through to Christmas without getting stirred up, but alas not so!

On Friday 28 November, the Advertiser ran an article titled ‘SANFL caught in a debt of Port’s making’.

The timing of this article was important because it provided fuel to the debate which has been brewing between the various footballing parties in this state, as we work our way towards a resolution of the long running Adelaide Oval Review.

I found the article disappointing and disrespectful.

The basic thrust of the article was that the SA football public needs to protect and appreciate the heritage of the SANFL, acknowledge it is in a difficult position financially, which may compromise its ability to deliver junior football development in this state and a significant reason for its financial malaise has been supposedly caused because it provided $16.25 million in assistance to Port Adelaide over the past few years.

This form of one-sided narrative has been around for years.

The article is unhelpful in the current environment, and neglects to acknowledge the obvious counter to this argument, which is the overwhelmingly positive impact Port Adelaide has had on the football economy in this state for close to 145 years.

You can’t, in all fairness, examine one side of the story without at least acknowledging the other.

In the spirit of even-handedness, I thought we should try and balance the ledger.

So firstly, let’s acknowledge that the SANFL has indeed provided Port Adelaide with $16.25m over the past eight years to assist the club through a tough time.

We are appreciative of the support that both the SANFL and the AFL have provided through this period, and are pleased that their faith and investment in us is now paying dividends and that we are once again on an upward swing.

But what about the positive aspects of Port Adelaide’s involvement in SA football over the years?

How does that stack up against the $16.25m assistance provided?

Since entering the AFL in 1997, the Port Adelaide Football Club has paid $11.963 million in the form of entry fees to the competition, licence fees, sub-licence fees, game development grants and other things.

Of that, $8 million was paid directly to the SANFL as they were our licence holder prior to 2014.

In that same period (1997-2013) 5,615,583 people attended Port Adelaide games at Football Park at an average of 28,505.
We won an AFL premiership
We were runners-up once.
We won three minor premierships.
Two pre- season premierships
Played in five preliminary finals.
Competed in 21 finals.

How much is all that worth financially?

Michelangelo Rucci once contemplated with each of those people effectively contributing $10 per game to the SANFL, a total contribution of $55 million into the state league is not too far off the mark.

Our own internal calculations arrived at a not too dissimilar result.

But if we are reflecting on the impact that the provision of $16.25m in assistance to Port Adelaide has had on the SANFL’s overall debt position, then we need to go back further.

So what about the period between 1975 and 1985 when Football Park, the financial nest egg of the SANFL, was established?

Was Port Adelaide a significant contributor to the ultimate success of the stadium?

During this period (1975-1985) Port Adelaide played 98 games at Football Park in front of a combined 1,937,016 people.

That’s an average crowd of 19,765, every time Port Adelaide played at Footy Park in its first 10 years. I suspect that was an important contribution at the time.

You would, of course, remember these games:
66,897 people at the 1976 Grand Final (highest attendance ever at a game of SA football)
31,809 people at the 1989 Foundation Cup Grand Final (record pre- season game attendance)
27,743 people at a pre-season trial in 1990 v Geelong (record crowd for a trial game)

Not bad numbers, even by today’s AFL standards!

And then of course there is our all-time playing record.
36 premierships
40 runners-ups
44 minor premierships
4 Championships of Australia
65% all-time winning record

We shouldn’t need to roll this stuff out, but it is an incredible record.

It is a remarkable contribution to football and sport in this state over 145 years, both on-field and financially.

If anyone says Port Adelaide is responsible for the SANFL’s problems, tell them it’s a myth.

We cop the $16.25m as fair game. But please don’t ignore the $70 million going back the other way to the SANFL.

All we ask for is balance.

If you add in the extraordinary financial contribution the Adelaide Football Club has made to the SANFL in the last 25 years as well, it paints a slightly different picture of the football economy in South Australia.

Let’s put all that aside for now.

Next week, SA football will make an important decision regarding the future of the game in this state.

Crows CEO Andrew Fagan and I will brief the media on the progress of the Adelaide Oval review.

This is a ‘line in the sand’ moment, where SA football has the opportunity to ratify a new model that will establish our state as the pre-eminent overall football structure in Australia.

A structure where the two AFL clubs are incentivised to drive, through our members and supporters, the football economy of this state, with the SANFL continuing to provide a powerful second-tier competition, elite junior development and increase grassroots participation.

That opportunity is available to us. Now.

I look forward to updating you further next week.

KT

 

[mic59]

And what about the cheques we were forced to pay to the SANFL each time attendance to our games fell below a certain level? I'm not privy to how much they were each time but I would assume they were a not inconsequential amount. And did the SANFL pay us when we had a crowd above that figure? I very much doubt it. The $16.25m falls very much into the category of the SANFL taking with one hand and giving with the other, something KT would be aware of but has to be diplomatic enough to ignore in his speech.

 

[Traveling_Power]

Dear members and supporters,

First, a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and your families on behalf of all of us here at the club - it’s a special time of year and I hope you have a relaxing and enjoyable time over the next few weeks.

At the club, you’ll be pleased things haven’t slowed down in the slow part of the year!

50,000 members

It never ceases to amaze me how many passionate Port Adelaide people continue to commit to the club, and despite two tough years on field, we’ve been tracking at a near-record rate of membership sign-ups.

Our target is 60,000 members. We’ve made it these last two seasons, and we’re confident we can do it again.

Open Training and Family Day

We’re lucky to have a club community that relishes the chance to be part of our footy club, and to support our players at training. On Monday, we had over 1,000 people come to Alberton for our first open training of the pre-season. In scenes reminiscent of our SANFL heyday, it was great to see so many kids leaning over the fence waiting to get an autograph from our players, and our footy team getting around our people.

The next big opportunity to see the players in action will be our annual family day in February. Make no mistake this will be a huge event, combining our season launch with our biggest supporter day on the calendar (outside of our games, of course!)

SANFL and Next Generation Academies

The SANFL fixture has been released for next year and it’s a pleasing draw. There’s the novelty of night time footy with away games against the Bays and Redlegs in the opening two rounds, and the excitement of hosting games in Anzac Round, Indigenous Round and Multicultural Round.

Importantly, our calendar is advantageous for those wanting to get back to supporting the Maggies this year – we are very happy that only two Alberton home games fall on weekends where the Power also play home, so there’s plenty of chances for you to get around Chad Cornes and the boys in 2017.

As an extension of this, our Next Generation Academies have started up and we’ll have some exciting coverage of these brand new footy development programs in the New Year.

Player leadership

Travis Boak will lead our group again next year. His fifth season as captain will be another big challenge, but we’d all agree his leadership has grown significantly in that time. He’ll be supported by Ollie as vice-captain – a huge step-up for Ollie, but one that he’ll take in his stride, and Hamish, Brad, TJ and Jacko will give the pair of them plenty of support in the extended leadership group.

China

Things are moving well on the China front. Interest in the Shanghai game is high and you’ll be hearing a lot more about that in the new year. It’s wonderful to have Cathay Pacific Airlines join us as a partner in the past week, another really positive indicator of the club’s potential to attract new partnerships as a result of our China Engagement Strategy.

Cathay join Shanghai Cred and Ausgold as the other major partners of our China campaign.

At our recent Promotional Tour in Shanghai we introduced over 2,000 children to our game and to our club, held a media event in front of the 18 leading media outlets in China and continued to put in place the foundations of a successful game in May 2017. If we reflect on the year we have had since the Prime Minister announced our intention to play the first AFL game for points in China in April, it’s quite remarkable the progress we have made. Next year, we hope to take it further again.

The year ahead

I’ll conclude by simply saying thank you for your support this year. It is appreciated by every corner of our football club. Port people are traditionally a tough crowd to please, but we wouldn’t have it any other way – it’s the greatest motivator we have.

Take care this Christmas and New Year, and we’ll see you in 2017.

We Are Port Adelaide.

KT

 

[Daniel Flynn]

Fun fact he's vegetarian

 

[Ford Fairlane]

You would be too after years of trying to avoid the $anfl giving you a hot beef injection.