Gary Buckenara analyses Port Adelaide’s list after the 2019 season
Ollie Wines’ management and Port Adelaide have denied reports of shock trade talk with Carlton but list guru Gary Buckenara writes it has sent off alarm bells and could be a symptom of a bigger problem at the Power.
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There are two problems at Port Adelaide and their list isn’t one of them.
At their best, the Power can beat any team but at their worst any team can beat them. They are the AFL’s Jekyll and Hyde.
There is a lot of talent on the list and a good amount of depth to cover injuries when they occur.
The Power have 12 players I rate as either A or B-grade and a further seven aged 21 or under — led by young guns Connor Rozee, Zak Butters and Xavier Duursma. Those young guns have the talent and potential to develop into top-line AFL players.
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So why the constant struggles with consistency? The Power are one of the most frustrating teams to watch because this list should be a regular finals side.
It boils down to two key questions:
1. Does the group have the burning desire to achieve the ultimate success?
2. Are there too many individuals and players with self-interest?
I have been involved in the football industry for a long time as a player, recruiter and administrator and, along the journey, I’ve learnt many lessons about what it takes to build a successful team and culture.
I’m not saying that this Port Adelaide playing group is too self-interested, because I don’t know that — only the players themselves will know this deep down.
Sometimes coaches can’t even pick this trait within their group and it’s one of the biggest challenges of being a coach in today’s football where the rewards for individuals — contracts and individual accolades — are so big it can impact a player’s priorities when team success must be the motivation. In effect, team success is a bonus on top of a lucrative long-term deal.
While no one can blame a player for making a decision based on securing his long-term future, there needs to be a balance between personal gain and team success. After all, the most successful teams of the modern era — Geelong (2007-2011), Hawthorn (2012-15) and now Richmond (2017-19) — all have one thing in common: Making personal sacrifices to achieve sustained team success.
There needs to be some robust and honest discussions within Port Adelaide over the summer, centred around one key question: ‘Does team and club success mean enough to us as a playing group?’
Adding to this is the rumour surrounding co-captain Ollie Wines. It was reported the co-captain’s management approached Carlton to weigh up making a play for him to be traded, but the Blues said no. It has been denied by the Power and Wines’ management but, as we know well enough in the AFL industry, where there’s smoke there’s fire. It sounded alarm bells for me. If one of your captains isn’t wholeheartedly committed to the football club then that often filters down through the rest of the playing group.
Most of the senior players, including Wines, Charlie Dixon, Steven Motlop, Tom Rockliff and Scott Lycett, need to look at their own consistency of effort, because they’re the ones driving the standards for the young guns like Rozee, Butters, Duursma and Sam Powell-Pepper.
If they’re not 100 per cent committed to achieve the ultimate team success, then how can they expect the young guns to be?
If Port Adelaide can get to the bottom of its consistency problems, coach Ken Hinkley will be in charge of a seriously good team.
LIST NEEDS
The Power have a well-balanced list with a lot of depth and an even spread of experienced and young talent. Adding another tall forward and/or defender definitely wouldn’t hurt the structure, while they don’t really have a true crumbing small forward as the Grays — Robbie and Sam — are more marking forwards.
LIST BREAKDOWN
A: Travis Boak, Robbie Gray
B+: Scott Lycett
B: Brad Ebert, Hamish Hartlett, Ollie Wines, Charlie Dixon
B-: Tom Rockliff, Tom Clurey, Darcy Byrne-Jones, Tom Jonas, Ryan Burton
C+: Paddy Ryder, Steven Motlop, Karl Amon, Jack Watts, Riley Bonner, Dougal Howard, Justin Westhoff, Sam Gray
C: Trent McKenzie, Billy Frampton, Jarrod Lienert, Sam Mayes, Cameron Sutcliffe
C-: Nil
Developing*: Sam Powell-Pepper, Todd Marshall, Joe Atley, Dan Houston, Connor Rozee, Zak Butters, Xavier Duursma
Developing: Kane Farrell, Sam Hayes, Joel Garner, Willem Drew, Aidyn Johnson, Jake Patmore, Boyd Woodcock, Peter Ladhams, Riley Grundy, Tobin Cox, Martin Frederick
DRAFT STRATEGY
The Power will be armed with two first-round picks after a host of trades during the past two weeks. There are some nice small forwards in this draft that I’d be targeting with at least one of those early selections. Overall, the Port Adelaide recruiters can go best available for their picks as there isn’t really a standout need on this list.
CRYSTAL BALL
The list is good enough to be a finals contender and if the hunger and desire is strong enough then this group would be capable of challenging for a top-four position next year. The problem is, Port Adelaide has been so inconsistent for so long. How can we still be questioning a group’s hunger to succeed?
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