Black Diamond corner is synonymous with the Port Adelaide area . The black diamond itself is a small black diamond that is tougher and harder than the rest, it is formed by pressure and heat. Things made with black diamonds last longer and require less maintenance. There is something about it that speaks to the Port Adelaide Football Club we used to know and love. One small local club, playing in a tough competition, that didn’t shy away from pressure and had a success that had longevity. The most successful football club in Australia, the only local club outside of Victoria to elevate itself to the National competition.
The old Port never shied away from the pressure of demanding success with slogans like “the Magpies expect to win” and “we exist to win premierships”. They demanded success and their Creed ensured that they either achieved it, they “gave everything” in the pursuit of it, or they were “weed(ed) out” and declared “no-hopers”.
This week we got another reminder of what can happen when you expect and demand success, even in the face of adversity. Ange Postecoglou declared as he assumed the role of manager at Tottenham FC “I usually win things in my second year” and it put a mountain of pressure squarely on his shoulders. He could have realised the pressure he had put on himself and his players and backed down. Instead he doubled down, “I’ll correct myself – I don’t usually win things, I always win things in my second year”. Like the Port Adelaide of old he embraced the expectations, he embraced the pressure. And this week, in his 2nd year, he held the Europa League trophy aloft.
There have been a few moments under the current regime at Port Adelaide where the old ethos struggled to shine through. After a disappointing finals loss in 2017, in the midst of a 5 year run without a finals win, David Koch said “We only want players at Port Adelaide who are not only living their dream of playing AFL, but living their dream by winning a grand final. We’re a results driven organisation, we’re a club with a history. Our mission statement is to win premierships and make our community proud and everyone has got to sign on to that.” That’s a strong statement of success expectation. CEO Mathew Richardson was equally bold in 2021 with his Chasing Greatness plan, targeting 3 premierships by 2025.
Lofty ambitions are one thing but as The Creed so elegantly states they have to be met with action. Members will question why, having failed to win a final in the period from 2015 to 2019 there was no sense of holding people accountable at an administration, coaching or playing level. Or why having clearly failed to even get close to “greatness” in the 2021 to 2025 period there has seemingly been a similar lack of accountability.
Port is now a club that focuses on stability. David Koch is quoted as saying “Stability, I think, is a key ingredient into a successful sporting organisation.” And on the topic of coaching successions he has stated that “good clubs transition smoothly and our No.1 priority is to have no disruption and no distraction to the football program.”. Historically Port Adelaide was very stable on and off field, but in line with the Creed it was stability predicated by pressure and success, not stability in the hope of minimising pressure and still finding success.
The aim now seems to be to avoid pressure, to avoid disruption, to make things easy. It is the antithesis of the Ange approach (and the pressure he is under to keep his job) and the approach of the Port Adelaide of old. Just ask any player from the 80s and 90s at Port whether they felt any pressure heading back to Alberton after a game. Stability? Not likely. “Shape up or ship out” was more like it.
And so here we are in the midst of what is shaping to be a very disappointing 2025 season. A season built on 12 previous disappointing seasons for a club that “exists to win premierships”. The easy thing to do is to let it drift, to hope that something changes to make the transition strategy seem more palatable. This option is safe, it is stable.
The brave decision would be to take a risk, to bite the bullet. Yes it might put pressure on the administration to justify their transition decision and their change of tack. Yes it might put pressure on the incoming coach Josh Carr to show something despite not having a full preseason to prepare his players and his game plan. Yes it might put pressure on the players to show some pride and to fight for their new coach, to show that the problems weren’t all player related.
And pressure builds diamonds. And black (and white) diamonds are the toughest.
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