Janus
Advocatus Diaboli
- Sep 9, 2007
- 23,358
- 57,133
- AFL Club
- Port Adelaide
- Other Teams
- Dallas Cowboys, Chicago Bulls
"I don't want to lose heart! I want to believe, as he does."
Went to the Club 1870 event tonight, and it was fantastic. Everyone spoke well and there was a real sense of pride in the direction the club is heading. But there was something that resonated with me, something that Keith Thomas said, that I feel deserves it's own thread.
"Ben told me, these people get it. They are hardcore supporters," was one of the first things that left the great man's lips. And from what I heard and keep hearing from Casual Keith, he gets it completely. He gave us three examples of how Port Adelaide has fought for the links that tie it back to the community of Port Adelaide, South Australia and Australia when others have either deemed it too hard or approached it with the sole purpose of financial metrics.
How the SANFL decreed that we could no longer have our country zone in the Eyre Peninsula...yet none of the other SANFL clubs want to carry this 'burden' because it's 'too expensive'. Port Adelaide says "We won't abandon you."
How the Crows created a model that they claimed was about maintaining the integrity of the SANFL by using top-up players from other clubs, but now that they are uncompetitive that they want to change the rules that they agreed to - meaning that integrity is only a secondary concern. Port Adelaide says "We will fight to keep the integrity of our club in the competition that we have been a part of for 140 years."
How Adelaide complained to the AFL about how Port Adelaide, who had successfully honored and cherished the memory of all the soldiers who fought in battle for this country for 10 years, was continually 'gifted' an ANZAC round match. Port Adelaide says "It's not about the game. It's about the Port Adelaide supporters, players and support staff who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can enjoy the freedoms that we have today."
"We lost our way for a bit there," said Thomas. "We have 50,000 members because we're getting back to what Port Adelaide is all about."
What is Port Adelaide all about? The slogan is 'We exist to win premierships'. As Tim Ginever said, "Winning is everything. If someone tells you something different, they aren't Port Adelaide." But that motto means more than just holding up a flag or a premiership cup. It means, quite succinctly, that being Port Adelaide means we will excel at everything that we do. It's why one of the first lines of the creed is: "That there is great merit and noble achievement in winning a premiership." That is the highest honor that PAFC, as a football team, can attain.
But as football club, it's more than that. It's about the kid from the Eyre Peninsula who dreams about being an AFL star, who gets developed in our programs and finally gets drafted to a club that may not be Port Adelaide.
It's about supporting the community through programs such as the indigenous academy, with the primary aim of keeping young kids in school.
It's about giving something greater than yourself, not for financial gain, or for what the club thinks they can get out of it in terms of being a 'good corporate citizen', but because it's the right thing to do. I can guarantee you that every decision that AFC makes is weighed against ROI and other metrics.
"You'll never hear one of my staff use the 70/30 (Crows/Power) ratio again. It's bullshit," KT said. It's bullshit because Port Adelaide does more for football and for the community in this state than any other club, regardless of unsubstantiated supporter numbers. We are more passionate, more committed, more loyal, more driven.
Keith Thomas is ******* Port Adelaide. And so are we.
Went to the Club 1870 event tonight, and it was fantastic. Everyone spoke well and there was a real sense of pride in the direction the club is heading. But there was something that resonated with me, something that Keith Thomas said, that I feel deserves it's own thread.
"Ben told me, these people get it. They are hardcore supporters," was one of the first things that left the great man's lips. And from what I heard and keep hearing from Casual Keith, he gets it completely. He gave us three examples of how Port Adelaide has fought for the links that tie it back to the community of Port Adelaide, South Australia and Australia when others have either deemed it too hard or approached it with the sole purpose of financial metrics.
How the SANFL decreed that we could no longer have our country zone in the Eyre Peninsula...yet none of the other SANFL clubs want to carry this 'burden' because it's 'too expensive'. Port Adelaide says "We won't abandon you."
How the Crows created a model that they claimed was about maintaining the integrity of the SANFL by using top-up players from other clubs, but now that they are uncompetitive that they want to change the rules that they agreed to - meaning that integrity is only a secondary concern. Port Adelaide says "We will fight to keep the integrity of our club in the competition that we have been a part of for 140 years."
How Adelaide complained to the AFL about how Port Adelaide, who had successfully honored and cherished the memory of all the soldiers who fought in battle for this country for 10 years, was continually 'gifted' an ANZAC round match. Port Adelaide says "It's not about the game. It's about the Port Adelaide supporters, players and support staff who made the ultimate sacrifice so that we can enjoy the freedoms that we have today."
"We lost our way for a bit there," said Thomas. "We have 50,000 members because we're getting back to what Port Adelaide is all about."
What is Port Adelaide all about? The slogan is 'We exist to win premierships'. As Tim Ginever said, "Winning is everything. If someone tells you something different, they aren't Port Adelaide." But that motto means more than just holding up a flag or a premiership cup. It means, quite succinctly, that being Port Adelaide means we will excel at everything that we do. It's why one of the first lines of the creed is: "That there is great merit and noble achievement in winning a premiership." That is the highest honor that PAFC, as a football team, can attain.
But as football club, it's more than that. It's about the kid from the Eyre Peninsula who dreams about being an AFL star, who gets developed in our programs and finally gets drafted to a club that may not be Port Adelaide.
It's about supporting the community through programs such as the indigenous academy, with the primary aim of keeping young kids in school.
It's about giving something greater than yourself, not for financial gain, or for what the club thinks they can get out of it in terms of being a 'good corporate citizen', but because it's the right thing to do. I can guarantee you that every decision that AFC makes is weighed against ROI and other metrics.
"You'll never hear one of my staff use the 70/30 (Crows/Power) ratio again. It's bullshit," KT said. It's bullshit because Port Adelaide does more for football and for the community in this state than any other club, regardless of unsubstantiated supporter numbers. We are more passionate, more committed, more loyal, more driven.
Keith Thomas is ******* Port Adelaide. And so are we.
