Certified Legendary Thread China History in the Making Part 2

[JohnHinckleyJr]

I may be the odd one out here..

But I loved China I collect retro games ECT ..

So after the footy I'd take a week off and go Retro hunting ECT .


Bring it back

 

[OneGreatClub]

Distracts too much. We need Premierships

 

[TazD]

Koch is still the worst thing to happen to the Port Adelaide Football Club.

The china venture was pretty good for us imo. We should hang (figuratively) kochie for the Hinkley stuff tho.

 

[philreich]

One benefit of another game in China could be that someone steals Koch's passport over there, so he can't return to Australia .

 

[RossFC]

An "away" game just before the bye is still a good idea IMO.

 

[HinkleysHeroes]

Distracts too much. We need Premierships

But how does that make the community proud?

 

[Ford Fairlane]

There would be plenty of Australian businesses keen to help fund a venture back into the China market.

Koch made it clear we wouldn't be carrying the costs for a return to Shanghai.

 

[PAFC66]

Please don't bring this back it was a embarrassment. If they're thinking of dredging this up again then I assume kochie will be entrenched for another decade.

 

[Lockhart Road]

Please don't bring this back it was a embarrassment. If they're thinking of dredging this up again then I assume kochie will be entrenched for another decade.

Who’s the embarrassment sunshine? You, methinks.

If not for China we’d have no MG, GFG, Shanghai CRED or UnionPay.

Our major sponsors collection would be looking pretty thin … and embarrassing.

 

[PAFC66]

Who’s the embarrassment sunshine? You, methinks.

If not for China we’d have no MG, GFG, Shanghai CRED or UnionPay.

Our major sponsors collection would be looking pretty thin … and embarrassing.

And that's great but are we looking to gather more Chinese sponsors ?
As long as kochie isn't here to see it I don't care

 

[Peninsula Boy]

The china venture was pretty good for us imo. We should hang (figuratively) kochie for the Hinkley stuff tho.

According to the high flyers on this forum, Koch had a very poor showing with China and the lads on this site put in huge works for the club while Koch had no idea what he was doing.

We have a lot to be thankful for them.

 

[Port 2004]

Please don't bring this back it was an embarrassment. If they're thinking of dredging this up again then I assume kochie will be entrenched for another decade.

You are the only embarrassment on this board.

 

[Grave Danger]

You are the only embarrassment on this board.

Big call...

 

[Peninsula Boy]

For mine, it is still a huge opportunity and when Koch goes hopefully some of the ground work that has been placed will be still there for some of our people to knock it out of the park.

I mean the damage Koch has done to this club and what could've been is just appalling.

 

[Visenfest]

And that's great but are we looking to gather more Chinese sponsors ?
As long as kochie isn't here to see it I don't care

What’s your angle here? That we shouldn’t be going back to China? That we shouldn’t attract more sponsors out of the venture? That Koch shouldn’t be involved?

Koch staying out of the way is something we can all agree with, but any notion that this is a pointless venture is ridiculous. We’ve already benefited from it substantially, and could benefit even more so. Heck, it might even improve relations between Australia and China, which the idiots in Canberra seem incapable of doing.

It’s very difficult to decipher your motives sometimes.

 

[Festerz]

Got a run on the Front Bar.



Full program worth a watch btw - Dwayno was pretty funny and had a couple of stories about his Port days (including the day he got a thigh kiss and touch up from a couple of the Port faithful).

 

[all seeing eye]

Might have to play Kangaroos, there desperate enuf to sell a home game (Tas) for big bucks when they lose that market.

 

[1954]

Like many I would like to see the club resurrect the games in China, but if it does happen I don't want that f/wit kok involved, unless of course the Chinese government can dig up some disparaging remarks he may have made about their current regime and decide to detain him as a political prisoner.

 

[simba_]

replace Koch with Lockhart Road and get back there ASAP

 

[Buget]

The game in China, if Port don’t need to fund it, has a lot of positives. And it was only a joke to those traditionalist in the AFL industry who don’t want the status quo to change.

The current economic down turn in China means that Australian iron ore exports are dropping in value. Better diplomatic and trade relations mean some industries are open to Australian exports again, which our trade department would be keen to maximise to somewhat offset the iron ore downturn.

The AFL game shows what is good about our country and acts as a massive ice breaker for conversations. But business in China is inherently risky. Look what happen to the wine industry because a Polly made a comment about the origins of COVID.

Not leading the charge does come with risks though. Port could be easily benched for a Melbourne or Sydney team. Particularly one who would willingly take a home game there or open doors into a bigger market.

It’s all theoretical anyway. Businesses have dozens of ideas that aren’t executed. Interesting thought though.

 

[tribey]

Koch made it clear we wouldn't be carrying the costs for a return to Shanghai.

Yeah, wasn’t it just at the point of profit when COVID hit, following years of setup costs (not to mention zillions of manhours)?

If it will supply net profit, it’s a no-brainer.

 

[Festerz]

I can understand why Canberra is getting a bit excited about looking to re-instate some sports diplomacy back into the China relationship. The thawing of trade relations with China has been ongoing over the past 18 months with another major lifting of tariff barriers to Australian exports announced overnight:

https://www.wsj.com/world/china/china-lifts-ban-on-most-australian-beef-exporters-australian-officials-say-73a59d27

But there is still a fair way to go on the defence front, especially in relation to freedom of passage rights in the South China sea with a Chinese fighter aircraft intercepting a navy helicopter taking part in UN sanction work against North Korea.

And a travel advisory warning Australians that they Australians may be at risk of arbitrary detention was issued just 3 weeks ago.

https://www.smartraveller.gov.au/destinations/asia/china

So still a long way top go before we can think of returning to Shanghai I would think.

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Yeah, wasn’t it just at the point of profit when COVID hit, following years of setup costs (not to mention zillions of manhours)?

If it will supply net profit, it’s a no-brainer.

I heard there were some big companies, including AFL sponsors, who were ready to ride the train.

I went over there as a supporter, did a couple of weeks touring around the game, had an incredible time.

 

[wannabejack]

.....

So still a long way top go before we can think of returning to Shanghai I would think.

“Man who wait for roast duck to fly into mouth have a very long wait.”

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

An AFLW game for premiership points will happen in China before an AFL game does, IMO.
An AFL exhibition game will happen in China before an AFL game for premiership points game does, IMO.

The club is still interested in China generally, but with regards to playing a game there, they have said the AFL has to be the driver this time and they are the one that has to raise the money to put it on, not us.

Playing games in China did its job. To quote JFK from his go to the moon speech at Rice University, that rarely gets quoted;
"because that goal will serve to organise and measure the best of our energies and skills."

Playing in China tested us, our staff had to learn new things and skills, we passed with flying colours, achieved something no other sporting league in the world has been able to do, not just play an exhibition game, but play a game for premiership points in China.

It opened up corporate Australia's eyes to the Port Adelaide Football Club. It is seen as a can do club and the doors are more open now when we go looking for sponsors and corporate partners. We now have 6 that are paying over $1mil a year to be a corporate partner. 6 or 7 years ago we had none.

Coles is a major protected AFL partner. The only reason it came on board to sponsor Port, was because of the China game in 2020. The games were cancelled but it stayed on as 3rd tiered partner. The only other club Coles sponsors is Essendon. Coles do something with Collingwood for its Magpies Nest housing community partnership with the Salvos, but its mainly around Essendon v Collingwood games eg donating $1000 for each goal kicked in the games.

Some of you will remember from Part I of this thread, I am a big fan of Landline and talked a lot about the agricultural stories they showed about Oz and China agricultural trade.

The last 3 weeks they have shown stories about Oz and India's growing agricultural trade. With Modi driving India to be a global military and economic power, there are huge opportunities for Oz given the free trade deal, the QUAD defence arrangement, opening up of Indian economy and the large Indian diaspora in Oz. Then there is cricket like the cream on top of the cake.

Last week's story was about Oz wine exports to India. The reporter said, almost half India's population is 25 or younger, there are 230 million teenagers and every month over 1 million kids turn 18 and are legal to drink alcohol. I checked that stat and its closer to about 1.7 mil per month.

Watching this story I thought this is another China like opportunity for Oz. My next thought was, some club in the AFL is going to be smart enough to tap into this, like we tapped into China.

Essendon were set to play an exhibition game in 2021 in India, as part of their 150th anniversary celebrations, but covid killed that off. The crows under Fagan were interested in India, partly to try to not be out done by us in China and partly because they did have connections to India via supporters and corporates.

Tapping into India is more straight forward than China. English and some cultural norms make it so much easier dealing with India than the Middle Kingdom.

But which AFL club will take first mover advantage in India?? I wouldn't be surprised if nothing happens until we start, with significant AFL and federal government help, to fire up China again, and that said club piggy backs off our work.