AFL 2023: What the future holds for Port Adelaide captain Tom Jonas

Tom Jonas will return for the Power’s clash with the Blues, but what happens next? Is a good performance enough to keep him in the Power’s senior side?

ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA – MAY 19: Tom Jonas of Port Adelaide during the round 10 AFL match between Yartapuulti/Port Adelaide Power and Narrm Football Club/Melbourne Demons at Adelaide Oval, on May 19, 2023, in Adelaide, Australia. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images)

The short-term forecast for Port Adelaide captain Tom Jonas is now clear.

Beyond that it is anything but.

Trent McKenzie’s sprained ankle means the Power skipper will return to the AFL side to face Carlton at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.

It will be Jonas’s first AFL game since round 10 and just his ninth of the season after being ever present in recent years.

But when McKenzie is again available for selection in two to three weeks, Jonas becomes one of the big things to watch Alberton.

The 32-year-old will no doubt return with the attitude, determination and leadership that had Port assistant coach Chad Cornes three years ago comparing him with who many consider to be the Power’s greatest ever captain, Matthew Primus.

Jonas in his last appearance at AFL level. (Photo by Mark Brake/Getty Images)

Despite giving up a bit in height, Jonas (188cm) will be more than ready to put his hand up to go to Blues star Charlie Curnow (194cm), although it is possible Miles Bergman gets that job after nullifying Gold Coast spearhead Ben King (202cm) last week and getting the job on Geelong’s Jeremy Cameron (196cm) a month ago.

Unless McKenzie makes a shock recovery, Jonas will then lead the Power out for their massive home game against Collingwood the following week.

Then come the Crows, right when McKenzie should be back.

It would usually be a bold move to drop your captain for a Showdown but the Power have shown they are not afraid of a bold move this season.

And they have been rewarded for it by just how well some of their young defenders have performed.

Going into this season, the prospect of Jonas, and then Ryan Burton, being dropped by the Power would have almost seemed unfathomable.

Since then he has been in the SANFL, outside of a one-match ban. Picture: Naomi Jellicoe

But the Power haven’t shied away from making these big calls at the selection table and, in the case of Jonas, they have been open about it, in a departure from how clubs have previously handled a captain whose place in the side is uncertain.

So where things sit when McKenzie returns will be fascinating.

The Power will no doubt lean on Jonas’s leadership and experience during the week as they push for a premiership.

But if he is to play a part in this on the field, then he will need to reverse a worrying decline when it comes to his one-on-one contests.

From 2018 to 2022, Jonas was ranked 21st in the AFL for win rate in defensive one-on-one contests and ninth for loss rate.

This year, he is 91st in win rate and 96th for loss rate.

Teammate Aliir Aliir is ranked 37th for win rate and 44th for loss rate, while interestingly McKenzie is ranked 75th for win rate and 94th for loss rate, which adds weight to the Power’s pursuit of key defenders.

Jonas’ future is hanging in the balance, despite his return to the team.

Things can change, especially if he recaptures some of his past form in his return to the team, but the chances of him getting a contract extension appear bleak.

So it looks as though this will probably be his last season given it is unlikely he will play on elsewhere.

Jonas has a young family, a law degree, an MBA and other interests outside of footy, such as his wine company Hey Diddle.

Jonas leading out the Power earlier this season. (Photo by Brendon Thorne/AFL Photos/via Getty Images )

If what does seem to be on the cards does eventuate, it means there will be a captaincy change at Alberton.

Vice-captain Ollie Wines has stepped up in Jonas’s place as the Power’s on-field leader.

While his stats have been down this season, the 2021 Brownlow Medallist has shown he can influence in other ways, such as his clever knock-on in the dying seconds of the Port’s thrilling win over Essendon a fortnight ago.

Wines, co-captain with Jonas in 2019, looms as the next Port Adelaide captain, while the club continues to mould young guns Connor Rozee (23) and Zak Butters (22), who have sat in on meetings with the club’s leadership group.

For this weekend, and most likely the next, the Power will be led out by Jonas with the No. 1 on his back.

After that, it is again up in the air.

Originally published as AFL 2023: What the future holds for Port Adelaide captain Tom Jonas