Brad Ebert’s future beyond 2020 remains uncertain, with Port Adelaide yet to grant him a contract extension
He might be the wrong side of 30, but Port Adelaide favourite son Brad Ebert is still among the best forwards in the game. So why haven’t the Power locked him away on a new deal?
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Brad Ebert’s future after this season is yet to be decided but, if this is the end, then the Port Adelaide royalty is looking to go out on a high.
The 30-year-old remains the highest profile Power player whose future post 2020 is yet to be known, with Ebert out of contract at year’s end.
Before the COVID-19-imposed shutdown and freeze on new contracts, a decision was made between the Power and Ebert’s representatives to park talks on a potential new deal to wait for the Port veteran to focus on getting back on the field and playing some consistent footy again after concussion and a knee injury seriously disrupted his 2019 campaign.
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Ebert’s 2020 has still been affected by injuries, but the favourite Port son has been back to his best when he is on the field.
Champion Data has Ebert as the only general forward in the competition this year to be ranked elite for disposals (14.5 per game), forward 50 ground ball-gets (two per game) and ranking points (85 per game).
Ebert’s 6.3 contested possessions a game and 3.7 tackles is also ranked elite, while his 4.5 score involvements each match for the Power is considered to be above average.
Despite uncertainty around list sizes for next year, the Power have already begun locking away their out of contract players and making some tough calls on others.
Charlie Dixon, Sam Powell-Pepper and Trent McKenzie have received new deals while seven players were either delisted or told they would not be considered for selection for finals.
Much-loved Justin Westhoff has announced he will retire at the end of the season, while Jack Watts has already hung up the boots.
Last month Port Adelaide’s general manager of football Chris Davies said Ebert’s history with head knocks would play a part in determining his future at the Power.
“It’s an interesting one because on one hand you are driven by the medical staff
who have a duty to ensure that a player is healthy before they come back onto the field or come back to play,” he said.
“And discussions will have to be had with someone like Brad who, unfortunately, puts
his head into spots that not too many other players are able to do, and it is a testament to his courage that he continues to find himself in those situations.
“Cleary it is one that we have to manage into the future, but I know Brad is mindful about that as well.
“What we do have is the remainder of this season to work through these things.”
POWER STAR MARSHALL LEARNS INJURY FATE
Doctors have cleared Port Adelaide’s key forward Todd Marshall of any serious damage to his AC joint after he hurt his shoulder in the opening minutes of last week’s qualifying final win over Geelong.
The good news means coaches will manage the 21-year-old this week, keeping him out of any contact training, before ramping up again next week ahead of the October 16 preliminary final, which the Power will play against either Richmond or St Kilda.
Port assistant coach Jarrad Schofield said Marshall – who kicked an important goal late in the game despite his injured shoulder – would still need to pass a fitness test, but was confident he’d get through.
“At this time of the year, there’s a lot of boys playing sore and they find a way to get through, but we’ll give (Marshall) time to prepare himself and recover and do the right things,” Schofield said.
The Power players were given the weekend off to celebrate their stirring 16-point win over the Cats at Adelaide Oval and returned to their Alberton headquarters on Monday for a team review and light training session.
Schofield said it would be a gradual build leading into the prelim in 10 days’ time.
“We’ll hopefully have a good hit out later in the week and we can get ourselves prepared for next Friday … (it’s a) great opportunity to maximise in terms of the week off, reset ourselves, see who we’re coming up against,” he said.
“But I think we’ve shown over the course of the year we deserve our top spot, we’ve earnt the right to have the week off by playing good footy.
“But it guarantees us nothing, (it) just gives us the best opportunity to prepare ourselves in the best way.”
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He said the extra week break would also benefit Xavier Duursma, who was concussed in the third quarter against Geelong.
“I think he’s a bit sore, but all reports say he’s fine,” Schofield said.
“I spoke to him on Friday and he said he was probably more sore body-wise than head-wise.
“He was upbeat after the game and he’s a tough kid, he does that week-in, week-out, and once again we’ve got the luxury of having this week off to give him the opportunity to rest and recover, but we expect there’ll be no concerns with him and he’ll be fine to go.”
All in all, Port is in tip-top condition, with only Marshall and Duursma sitting on its injury list and both are expected to play in the preliminary final.
Schofield acknowledged it was a privileged position that the club found itself in.
“From all reports the guys who went up (to Queensland for the scratch match) pulled up really well, so it’s a healthy list, which is what you want at this time of the year,” he said.