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“We were stubborn”: Power CEO’s scathing review

Sep 18, 2015
Port players thanks supporters as they leave Adelaide Oval for the final time in 2015.

Port players thanks supporters as they leave Adelaide Oval for the final time in 2015.

Port Adelaide’s chief executive Keith Thomas has delivered a remarkable assessment of where things went wrong for the underperforming Power in 2015, arguing the club was too “stubborn” in its game-plan and couldn’t handle increased pressure from opposition sides.

“We had to confront a different attitude from our competitors this year,” Thomas said, reflecting on a swift on-field resurgence that had seen the Power go from basketcase to premiership favourites in the space of two years.

“Port Adelaide had established a game-plan which was a little bit scary for other clubs.

“There was a very defensive attitude that come towards (playing) Port Adelaide, and we didn’t handle that well this year.”

Instead, Thomas argued, “we got a bit stubborn and thought we’ll keep doing what we’re doing … and it didn’t work”.

His comments are in stark contrast to coach Ken Hinkley’s continued denial that the Power had been too stubborn with its game plan.

“Everyone’s said that right through the year … the simple answer to that is people see the things that they want to see,” he said only last month.

“When they watch Port Adelaide play at their best they recognise when we’ve played at our best but they haven’t recognised the change in ball movement at times … we have three styles of ball movement that we work with all the time – we don’t just live in the one world.

“I’m really strong in the belief of what we do and I’m not going to change from that … I don’t care if people think I have to change or the team has to change – the team will get it right.”

The previous month, with Port’s season at the crossroads, Hinkley told media: “I’ll be accused, and so will the team and the club, of not being willing to change. My answer is: I’m not going to change.”

keiththomas

Keith Thomas with Ken Hinkley. Photo: AAP.

Thomas made his comments at a Property Council function that also featured Adelaide Crows CEO Andrew Fagan, as Port’s cross-town rivals prepare for a do-or-die clash with Hawthorn at the MCG tonight.

He said Port was in the midst of “quite a remarkable three or four year window”.

“Everybody understands the history of it … we were coming through some tough times (and) we’ve been riding that momentum through 2015, I think,” he said.

“What people probably need to understand is it’s a young group (playing) in a really, really competitive environment…we’re still learning and hopefully we’ll get better from it.”

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