Bone’s beef: Why Mark ‘Choco’ Williams’ whacking the Adelaide Crows for a lack of tradition is a crock
HISTORY is exactly that, writes inaugural Adelaide captain Chris McDermott, in response to Mark ‘Choco’ Williams’ claim that the Crows will never be a ‘traditional’ club.
Chris McDermott
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FORMER Port Adelaide coach and Tigers assistant Mark ‘Choco’ Williams is never dull.
He may rub the odd person the wrong way and he may be a little outspoken for some but dull he most definitely is not.
He loves getting under the skin of the Adelaide Football Club and their fans, much the same way he loved doing it to Glenelg fans.
Fair to say, he has just done it again as he no doubt dines out on Richmond’s premiership success.
Quizzed on why the Crows have had a constant flow of talented players leave the club, while the Power have been able to maintain theirs, Williams said: “Port Adelaide goes out of their way to try and make people be invested into the club. They are a club based on long-term, old-club traditions.
“Adelaide is a manufactured club that was thrown together. You can polish it and ripen it, make it look good, but it will never be a traditional club.”
And ...? So ...? A traditional ‘what’ club?
History is exactly that, history.
Best Mark be reminded the Crows’ 27 seasons in the AFL have produced two premierships, three grand final appearances and 15 finals campaigns.
Not bad for a ‘non-traditional’ club.
Port Adelaide’s 20 seasons have produced one premiership, two grand finals and 10 finals campaigns.
Not any better for a traditional club.
Mark went on to say, “We (the Power) don’t want to see players leaving Port Adelaide. We want to see you play your career with us. It worked particularly well for us.”
Of course, unless you are Shaun Burgoyne or Stuart Dew just to name a few. Perhaps Dean Brogan and Chad Cornes. All premiership heroes at Alberton, but that’s a different story.
It is also worth remembering Mark committed four years of his football life to a non-traditional club in the Brisbane Bears as they were known back in the late 1980s and in the non-traditional football state of Queensland.
Does it really matter? No.
A club is what you make it, traditional or not.
In the last 17 years since 2001, ‘non-traditional’ AFL clubs have played in 12 of the 17 grand finals and won six premierships.
In the same period, those ‘non-traditional’ AFL clubs have won just six wooden spoons. Traditional clubs have secured the other 11, Carlton four of them.
Times have changed, Mark. Football has changed too.
The non-traditional clubs are here to stay.
They may even be traditional clubs one day.
Second chances rarely pay off for AFL coaches
History suggests strongly that if you miss out on a premiership at your first try as a coach, you should not get another chance — unless you’re Mick Malthouse or Malcolm Blight, writes Chris McDermott.
When two tribes go to war
It was the game that stopped a state — the first Showdown between the Crows and Power on April 20, 1997. Chris McDermott shares his memories for Part 1 of The Greatest Showdowns series.