Sidelined Port Adelaide defender Nathan Krakouer takes responsibility for his poor decisions in Perth

EXCLUSIVE: Sidelined Power defender Nathan Krakouer says he has only himself to blame. He’s not playing the “celebrity victim” card for the broken jaw suffered in Perth — or hiding behind excuses.

AFL - Port Adelaide v Fremantle at Adelaide Oval. Nathan Krakouer. Photo Sarah Reed.

SIDELINED Port Adelaide defender Nathan Krakouer says he has only himself to blame.

He is not playing the “celebrity victim” card for the broken jaw suffered outside a Perth nightclub in mid-March — and he is not hiding behind excuses.

“I made a mistake,” Krakouer told The Advertiser in an exclusive interview on Thursday.

Krakouer will return to competitive football on Sunday — with the Port Adelaide Magpies in the SANFL clash with Central District at Alberton. He still has a week to serve of a club-imposed ban from AFL duties after his off-field mistake.

At the same time, police in Western Australia are still investigating the “king-hit” incident that left the 67-game Krakouer needing surgery — and having to explain to his AFL club and Power teammates why he had breached an order to not drink alcohol while in recovery from a hamstring injury.

Krakouer does not think he was targeted in public as an AFL player or as an indigenous person. He bluntly declares he erred when deciding with whom to share a night out in his hometown of Perth.

“I can’t say (that I was a target),” Krakouer said. “You hope no-one is targeting footballers or any celebrity.

“It is usually OK for me. To be honest, this happened because of the company I was in. It was not the best. That’s just being honest.

“I was not surrounding myself with the right people or in the right environment. I put myself in that position, so I made a mistake.

“(That is the lesson of) my decisions — (and) the people you surround yourself outside the football club. And making smarter decisions.”

Krakouer says he “knows what happened” — the broken jaw, in particular — outside the Capitol nightclub in Perth.

“But I don’t remember much (of how it happened),” Krakouer said. “I was excited to be back home, trying to get some time with my (two-year-old) boy who is in WA.”

Krakouer was rebuked by his teammates with a two-week ban from training with the major Power group at Alberton — and is denied being considered for AFL selection until next weekend.

Krakouer, 28 next month, also has been hit with another life lesson from his slip-up in Perth.

“Over the years I have learned a lot — and I am still learning as I go, obviously.

“I’m still making mistakes that cost you — and this one has cost me this year. I have to make that up to the boys, so that is why I can’t wait to get out there to start playing.

“I’ve had a good pre-season. Now I want to see where that takes me playing footy.”

Sidelined: Nathan Krakouer watches the Crows v Port Magpies SANFL match at Mannum Oval in April. Picture: Matt Turner.

A MOST PAINFUL BREAK

KRAKOUER does not remember how his jaw was broken. But the Port Adelaide defender will never forget the lesson from the mistake that has put another block on his chequered AFL journey.

And in the lead-up to his 28th birthday (May 5) — and a return to the SANFL on Sunday with the Port Adelaide Magpies — Krakouer knows he never again wants to face Power coach Ken Hinkley to explain another off-field mistake.

“I didn’t want to see him (this time) ... but I had to see him,” Krakouer recalled of the moment he faced Hinkley after returning from Perth with his jaw broken and in breach of the team rule demanding no alcohol while recuperating from a hamstring injury.

“It was a pretty brutal chat. I know I messed up ... it was a pretty tough chat that one.

“(Ken) would have been disappointed because he trusts you, he’s got love for you, he wants you to do right and he has given me an opportunity (after two previous attempts to establish an AFL career at the Power and Gold Coast).

“And I stuffed up ... yeah.”

Then there was the Port Adelaide playing group that banned Krakouer from its training group for a fortnight and has him out of consideration for AFL selection until next weekend.

“They were disappointed to know I was drinking while still in rehab, but they also have been supportive,” Krakouer says of his teammates.

“They’re wanting to help me get out of that hole and making sure I’m not down on myself for too long.

“I want to do the right stuff (to win back their trust). I don’t want to go into a shell. I might not be playing, but I’ve been in football long enough to be able to still help the boys.

“If I see something, I say something — be that at training or talking to someone about an opponent. If I feel I have some sort of advice on the game coming up, I’ll say it — or even at training if I feel there is something that is going to help us along the way, be it decision-making, seeing the game better, getting a kick.”

Krakouer should be doing such on weekends too as the Power struggles with inconsistency, which has delivered a 2-2 win-loss record.

He needs no-one to remind him of the opportunity he has denied himself while the embattled Port Adelaide defence clearly needs his experience — and precise kicking skills.

“That’s why it has been frustrating being injured and out of the team,” Krakouer says.

“And it has all built up. I’m disappointed in myself that I can’t play football, go hard on the field and get it out of my system while trying to help the boys win at the weekend.

Almost a decade has passed since then Power coach Mark Williams enthusiastically celebrated Krakouer’s arrival at Alberton as the No. 39 pick in the 2006 AFL national draft.

And for all the promise seen in Krakouer, he is still to play his 100th game — and is on his third stint in the big league after seeking a new start at Gold Coast in 2011 and again at Alberton two years ago after playing on WA’s country circuit.

Season 2016 — after the Power had kept Krakouer on edge during the summer as a rookie-listed player — started perfectly for the West Australian ... and then collapsed, even before the weekend off in Perth.

“It was a very good pre-season,” Krakouer recalled of his summer. “Then just before the NAB (Challenge) started there was that niggle with the hamstring that put me out for a few weeks. And then the incident back home in WA ...

“I’m glad I have a good (fitness) base from the pre-season.

“In the last few weeks, I’ve been doing a lot of running, game simulation ... and my numbers reflect what you would get in a game, so I’m pretty confident — and looking forward to getting back out there.”

Krakouer has been the frustrated football spectator on weekends and eager coach in training during the week when he has made a point of not being the silent guy in the “naughty corner” at Alberton.

“But it has been tough ... because you just want to play,” Krakouer said. “I was so close during the NAB (Challenge) — and nine weeks later, I’m still not playing. That’s tough, frustrating not being able to play.

“(In those nine weeks) I’ve watched and learned and tried to look out for some things. But I’ve been the spectator, trying to not get too caught up in everything. But it is very frustrating to watch football when you want to play.”

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Originally published as Sidelined Port Adelaide defender Nathan Krakouer takes responsibility for his poor decisions in Perth