Port Adelaide: Power reveals grand vision to be an AFL powerhouse

Port Adelaide has unveiled its bold vision to build an era of unprecedented success on and off the field.

Port Adelaide has unveiled its grand vision for the next five years, headlined by winning three premierships, having over 100,000 members and eliminating $12 million in debt.

Dubbed ‘Chasing Greatness’, the five-year strategic vision was revealed to members at the club’s Annual General Meeting on Friday by Port Adelaide chief executive Matthew Richardson.

Richardson said the club had a “vision to build an era of unprecedented success at Port Adelaide”.

“The reality is in the AFL-era we have not achieved greatness,” he said.

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“We have the opportunity now to strike but it just doesn’t happen.

“Our mission, the mission at Port Adelaide is simple and it always has been, it’s our purpose and it’s what our club has been built on – it is to win premierships and it’s the measure of success.”

Charlie Dixon is a vital cog in Port’s push to be premiership contender. Picture: Getty Images

The strategic vision is built around six key principles that Richardson said was “a picture of the future and what we are aiming for over the next five years”;

WIN premierships,

100,000 members,

COMMUNITY heart,

COMMERCIAL growth,

RE-DEVELOPED Alberton Precinct, and

DEBT free

Richardson said winning premierships — not just one — was the key aim, and the club was also hoping to enter the AFLW within two-years.

“What does greatness look like? It’s about winning premierships but not just one. In the AFL era greatness is Brisbane into Geelong into Hawthorn and into Richmond,” Richardson said.

“Greatness is winning multiple premierships, I have 40 in my mind (Port Adelaide have currently won 36 in the SANFL and one in the AFL) as a nice round number.

“It is at every level and it has to enhance our ability to win AFL premierships.

Power coach Ken Hinkley. Picture: Getty Images

“AFLW by 2023, why? It’s the football club of the future. We have also handed our cross-town rival (Adelaide) another eight-year head start (in an AFLW team).

“It’s a key ingredient in our ambitions for growth and also an important part of our ambitious redevelopment of the Alberton Oval precinct which becomes a 12 month of a year venue.”

Richardson said the other key part of the plan was increasing membership to 100,000 and beyond.

“Port Adelaide is a big club with a big club mentality … it’s why the AFL desperately wanted Port Adelaide in the competition in 1990,” he said.

And the club will embark on an aggressive debt elimination policy, after COVID-19 forced the club to increase its debt to $12 million following a hit to revenue of $18 million.

Before the AGM the Power announced a net loss from continuing operations of $278,806 for the financial year ending October 31 2020.

But after taking into account one-off COVID-19 related and restructuring costs of $1.186m, depreciation and non-cash balance sheet adjustments, the club had a statutory loss of $4,040,579 for 2020.

Port Adelaide chief executive Matthew Richardson has revealed the club’s five-year plan. Picture: Bianca De Marchi

In what should have been a bumper year for the club, celebrating its 150th anniversary, Port’s operating revenue declined by $18.65 million (32 per cent).

This resulted in a $17.86 million (31 per cent) cut to its cost base across 2020.

Port also had to borrow $4.275 million, increasing its debt to $12 million - after having its debt down to just over $7 million at the end of 2019.

Port Adelaide chairman David Koch said after the club saw off COVID, “the greatest financial threat in the club’s history”, it would now look to be debt free by 2025.

He said this would begin with a goal of reducing debt by $2 million in 2021, which he described as an “off-field Grand Final”.

“We have to do something about this debt level and we are,” he said.

“We are really focused and if there is one thing in our favour is historically low interest rates.

“Our debt levels are too high so we use this period of historic interest rates and a really solid organisational structure to pay down debt very quickly.”

HOW PORT DEALTH WITH ITS ‘GREATEST FINANCIAL THREAT’

Port Adelaide was forced to increase its debt to $12 million, after COVID-19 hit the club’s revenue to the tune of $18 million.

But Port chairman David Koch says the Power is confident it can reduce this sizeable debt quickly, after “the greatest financial threat in the club’s history”.

Ahead of Friday evening’s Annual General Meeting the Power announced a net loss from continuing operations of $278,806 for the financial year ending October 31 2020.

But after taking into account one-off COVID-19 related and restructuring costs of $1.186m, depreciation and non-cash balance sheet adjustments, the club had a statutory loss of $4,040,579 for 2020.

In what should have been a bumper year for the club, celebrating its 150th anniversary Port’s operating revenue declined by $18.65 million (32 per cent).

To address this the club “had to be re-engineered quickly” which resulted in a $17.86 million (31 per cent) cut to its cost base across 2020.

Koch said COVID-19 was the greatest financial threat in the club’s history. (The Advertiser/ Morgan Sette)

Koch said this was required to safeguard the future of the club.

“COVID-19 became the greatest financial threat in the club’s history and, as a result, we were forced to make some extremely tough decisions through 2020, which sadly meant farewelling some fantastic Port Adelaide people,” he said.

“That was a horrible reality for us in 2020 and it is a challenge the whole industry has had to deal with, but decisions needed to be made to ensure our club was positioned to come through this extremely challenging time.”

The Power were one of multiple clubs that had to go to the AFL for financial assistance because of COVID-19’s impacts.

Koch said the Power finished the season with additional borrowings of $4.275 million, increasing its overall debt position to $12 million.

The Power had gotten its debt down to just over $7 million at the end of 2019 and Koch said he was hopeful the club could reduce this quickly.

“After making sure our football department was fully funded, over the last couple of years we had started to pay down our debt,” he said.

The Power made the preliminary final in 2020 Picture: Sarah Reed

“But COVID-19 proved to be an unexpected and severe setback to our debt reduction plans, but we have great confidence to accelerate again thanks primarily to the incredible support we are already seeing from our members and key stakeholders.

“However, whilst we suffered financially like most businesses during 2020, we saw continued growth from our football program, falling just short of a Grand Final appearance. The club is in a great position to challenge in 2021.”

Koch said there were some green shoots appearing with KFC joining as the club’s third joint major partner, while membership, hospitality and commercial partnerships were tracking strongly against budget.

Adelaide is also expected to announce a significant loss when it reveals its finances next month.