Port Adelaide is a football club that used to hold its fans in the highest regard. The players and administration would praise them for their voice, passion and ability to hold the custodians of the club to account.
Players like Greg Anderson tell tales of the members forthrightly holding the players to account in the club rooms back at Alberton. Club legends like the great Geoff Motley said “we played on the basis that we could not possibly let down the followers of the Port Adelaide Football Club – the greatest gift we could give them was a premiership.” Successful coaches like John Cahill talked of fearing “that I’ll let supporters down”
And the club thrived on it. It was not seen as internal turmoil or disloyalty, quite the opposite, it was everyone holding each other accountable to the pre-agreed standards and goals so eloquently written down in the clubs creed. The fans, players, coaches and administration would “suffer personal sacrifices for the common end”. This was not a club just happy to survive, it was a club determined to win with a written “contract” to hold each other accountable.
Driven by loud, passionate, relentless fans demanding success it became the most successful club in Australia. John Cahill said the “Port Adelaide fans are the heartbeat of the club. Their passion and loyalty drive us to achieve greatness.” Whilst Fos Willaims said “Port Adelaide’s success is built on the unwavering support of our fans. They are the true champions.” This was not a club where everyone won a prize (or a kind word), respect was earnt and given in equal measure.
But somewhere along the line the club lost its way. No longer a club of the fans, for the fans, it has become something else. Perhaps it was in 1996 when the rights to vote for the board was passed over to the SANFL? Perhaps it was in 2014 when this control was passed on again, not to the loyal members but to the AFL?
Keith Thomas, a true football person, Norwood great and former CEO of the PAFC recognised it back in 2019. He talked of 2014 when Port were recognised “as having some of the most-engaged supporters in world sport” and noted that the club had “dropped the ball” and that “we don’t feel like that today… I know it and, more importantly, you know it”. His solution? “Talk less and listen more.”
In his absence the club seems to have taken the exact opposite approach. Club leaders like David Koch, Mathew Richardson, Ken Hinkley and even Charlie Dixon seem to be all talk, little action and even less listening.
The members are referred to as “white noise”, “idiots” and “people who call themselves fans” and that is just from within the walls of Alberton!
Outside of the club the members have been called “ferals”, “nasty”, “ungrateful” and much worse. And there seems to be very few at Alberton outside of Warren Tredrea who are willing to even listen to the fans, let alone defend them or want to live up to their expectations.
Coach in waiting Josh Carr at least acknowledged that the members “probably feel let down when they come to games, they’ve invested their money and time into it, and they feel like they’re being let down”.
Who else is willing to step up and support the Port Adelaide Football Club and its members? David Koch? Mathew Richardson? Chris Davies? Are we going to present a united front, holding each other accountable to our creed for success? Or are we going to allow those outside of the club to “tear us apart”?
I will leave the final word to the great John Cahill. “At Port Adelaide, the expectation is always to win. We play for our supporters, who are the heart and soul of the club”
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