Opinion A letter to all Port faithful: on the current state of P.A.F.C. [July 8th, 2021]

[GremioPower]

Uruguayana, July 8th 2021.
​

From: Paulo Roberto Tellechea Sanchotene (a.k.a. GremioPower)
To: All whom may it concern
Subject: On consistency, leadership, and change at the Port Adelaide F.C.

“As Tredders said tonight
there is a major issue between the ears,
lack of belief going in to big games
has been an issue for years.”
(Portmagpies36, on BigFooty – 07/08/2021)​

Dear fellow Port barrackers,


I’m writing this out of frustration. I know. I’m 8,000 miles away from Alberton. I have no way to actually do something. I can only spill it all out, while hoping my words can inspire someone. Sometimes, they help inspiring me – on how to deal with my own personal struggles.
 Still, frustration is not everything. I’m writing this not only because I care (and I do care, a lot, probably more than I should), but because I believe these words make sense, and Port seems to need to take them into consideration.

Consistency is the key to understand where the Power currently is. During the last five or six years, while the majority of the AFL clubs have been inconsistent, there have been some consistently good (Tigers/Cats); and others, consistently bad (Suns/Blues). Only one have managed to be consistently mediocre: the Port Adelaide Football Club.


That’s probably the main issue at the moment. Port is a known quantity, but not plentiful nor wanting. We have been served the same tasteless dish season after season. It is as if Port is responsible for putting the “meh” into menu!
 There are some spice in variance; in that feeling of not knowing what is going to happen. The Power doesn’t give that. There is loads of fun being always on the Top, even in the frustrating case of teams who fail again and again to get the flag. (Yes, I am thinking of Geelong.) At Port, we have none of it. Even being at the bottom can be a good thing, since it may spark some flame and bring change – and with change, comes hope. Sweet, sweet hope. Not in Alberton, though.
 We don't change.

---​

It’s the 2021 AFL season, we are in R17, and # 4 Port has just lost at home to # 2 Melbourne by a lot. Considering the current ladder, the teams in the Top-4 are Bulldogs, Demons, Lions, and Cats. (We have lost a position in %.) Port is 0-4 against them this season. We still have another match against the Dogs to play. It might be the only way for us to get a victory against the best.


Regardless, this kind of record is not new. From 2016 to 2020, we had a 4-22 record against Top-4 teams. That’s not a typo. The record is, indeed, FOUR wins in 26 matches. These were the victories:

a) 2018/R12, 72-58 v. Richmond
​

b) 2019/R14, 67-56 v. Geelong
​

c) 2020/R11, 93-72 v. Richmond
​

d) 2020/QF, 58-42 v. Geelong​

By the way, during the aforementioned period, against Top-4 teams, we are 2-4 against the Tigers, 2-3 against the Cats, and 0-19 against all the others combined. In no season since 2016 we have had a winning record versus the Top-4 sides. The best we did was last year: 2-3.


How bad is that? You tell me. We are only better than Essendon and Gold Coast. What do you all think? Overall, the Bombers are 12th, and the Suns are 18th. They don’t simply struggle against the Top teams like Port. They just struggle.
 Port is different. Our overall record in the same period is good enough for a 5th place. FIFTH PLACE! Since 2016, Port’s record against clubs between 5th and 8th on the ladder is respectable: 10-11-1. (Don’t even… The 2017 EF ended up in a tie! We lost in extra-time. It’s not the same thing as a regulation loss.) Moreover, the Power’s W-L against non-Finals teams are impressive 48-12. Hence, my point.


We know what Port will give us. It doesn’t matter venue, weather, injuries – against the best, the Power will lose; against the other strong sides, it’s basically a coin toss; while we are going to beat the weaker sides. One might expect such a distribution. In the end of the day, it is somewhat true for the league as whole. However, of the 18 AFL clubs, only Port has it so perfectly balanced.


We have been the quintessential 5th-to-10th middle-of-the-ladder AFL club for more than half a decade. That’s a fact, and there are no signs this will no longer be the case any time soon. Mind you all that I'm not saying I would do better, if I were at the club’s helm. I most probably wouldn’t.
 Yet, such a regular mediocrity seems to reveal leadership issues – which would be permeating the club as a whole; from the board to the field.

This is a shame, because we have plenty of good people in there. Moreover, I'm not saying that our current leaders are bad. I don't believe that. There’s plenty of praise they deserve to receive. That which worries me is the impression there is a belief that we are on the right track. We may have been on it at some point, but that is no longer true; and those who don’t realize that, they become part of the problem.

---​

My current opinion is that some of the people we have in leadership positions would simply be out of their depth, either because they have run their course (this is more on those at the top) or because they are in roles that do not suit them (this is more on those at the bottom). If we felt obliged to retain the current structure (imagine, for instance, a family business), being where we are wouldn't be bad. Port's situation is steady, and we have been evolving – as painfully and slowly as it may have been. We would be buying time to get the succession right; and the next generation would get the house in order when their time is ripe.

We aren't a family business, however. We don't have obligations to no one due their blood or marital relations. The club is not owned by only a few. The most important thing, though, is that we are Port Adelaide, which means we exist to win premierships. Currently, we are not near enough the level we need to be to achieve that for which we exist. Yet, although we have been like this for the past 4 our 5 years, things barely changed.

Yes, we went to China. Yes, Boak is no longer captain. Yes, Thomas is no longer the C.E.O. Yes, we have added a couple of new line coaches. Yes, yes, yes; to all that. It’s all true. The problem is that these changes might not have been as substantial as we need them to be.
 After all, it is also true that China has helped us deliver a major sponsor – MG; that Boak has found himself again; that, at least, the language from the club has already improved since Richo took the office; and that our squad has been getting better. Those things point out that changes may come for the best, and that we need to keep on going with them.

Since the on-field issues remain (and some others off-field, as well), one must raise the possibility that we haven’t made all the changes we should have done. Let’s check where things have remained equal and start looking for possible improvements. No taboos. Nothing can be untouchable. If something is a bad idea, it will be clear it is a bad idea. There’s no reason to be afraid of them.


Ultimately, I fully believe that Port is better than that which we current are. We are the ones holding ourselves down. That’s unacceptable. After all, “honorable defeat of our club and guernsey can only come after human endeavor on the playing field is completely exhausted.”

---​

Can we truly argue that it has indeed been?


Yours truly,
GP

 

[Total Power]

GP, you talk more sense and many of our fans in Adelaide. I have been banned from the Ken Oath FB group for criticising Kenny. The moment you say this you become a ' fake fan' , or a cancer to the club or some other name.

We are 4-22 against top 8 teams since 2016! this is a damning statistic. There is no way to work past this, Ken had 8 years and changed several assistants, the same problems remain. It's obvious where the problem lies, yet our board and our members (many of them) refuse to take their teal coloured glasses off?

I really had a gutful, i spend over 2,000/year on membership and merchendise to support the club as an overseas member (add customs duties which are a cost to me but not to the club), yet they refuse to listen to us. Why do we pay money every year for the tired old shit? tried.tested.failed. Every.damn.year.

#sackhinkley

 

[portfan36]

Well said Gremio. A change is now mandatory.

I would like to thank Ken Hinkley for the effort he has put in to develop the squad to where it is now. But unfortunately he doesn't have the skills to take them any further. He is rapidly becoming a laughing stock in the football community, and he is taking PAFC down with him. If there is any legacy Hinkley wants to leave at PAFC then it is in PAFC's and his best interests to leave.

 

[OneGreatClub]

Uruguayana, July 8th 2021.
​

From: Paulo Roberto Tellechea Sanchotene (a.k.a. GremioPower)
To: All whom may it concern
Subject: On consistency, leadership, and change at the Port Adelaide F.C

“As Tredders said tonight
there is a major issue between the ears,
lack of belief going in to big games
has been an issue for years.”
(Portmagpies36, on BigFooty – 07/08/2021)​

Dear fellow Port barrackers,


I’m writing this out of frustration. I know. I’m 8,000 miles away from Alberton. I have no way to actually do something. I can only spill it all out, while hoping my words can inspire someone. Sometimes, they help inspiring me – on how to deal with my own personal struggles.
 Still, frustration is not everything. I’m writing this not only because I care (and I do care, a lot, probably more than I should), but because I believe these words make sense, and Port seems to need to take them into consideration.

Consistency is the key to understand where the Power currently is. During the last five or six years, while the majority of the AFL clubs have been inconsistent, there have been some consistently good (Tigers/Cats); and others, consistently bad (Suns/Blues). Only one have managed to be consistently mediocre: the Port Adelaide Football Club.


That’s probably the main issue at the moment. Port is a known quantity, but not plentiful nor wanting. We have been served the same tasteless dish season after season. It is as if Port is responsible for putting the “meh” into menu!
 There are some spice in variance; in that feeling of not knowing what is going to happen. The Power doesn’t give that. There is loads of fun being always on the Top, even in the frustrating case of teams who fail again and again to get the flag. (Yes, I am thinking of Geelong.) At Port, we have none of it. Even being at the bottom can be a good thing, since it may spark some flame and bring change – and with change, comes hope. Sweet, sweet hope. Not in Alberton, though.
 We don't change.

---​

It’s the 2021 AFL season, we are in R17, and # 4 Port has just lost at home to # 2 Melbourne by a lot. Considering the current ladder, the teams in the Top-4 are Bulldogs, Demons, Lions, and Cats. (We have lost a position in %.) Port is 0-4 against them this season. We still have another match against the Dogs to play. It might be the only way for us to get a victory against the best.


Regardless, this kind of record is not new. From 2016 to 2020, we had a 4-22 record against Top-4 teams. That’s not a typo. The record is, indeed, FOUR wins in 26 matches. These were the victories:

a) 2018/R12, 72-58 v. Richmond
​

b) 2019/R14, 67-56 v. Geelong
​

c) 2020/R11, 93-72 v. Richmond
​

d) 2020/QF, 58-42 v. Geelong​

By the way, during the aforementioned period, against Top-4 teams, we are 2-4 against the Tigers, 2-3 against the Cats, and 0-19 against all the others combined. In no season since 2016 we have had a winning record versus the Top-4 sides. The best we did was last year: 2-3.


How bad is that? You tell me. We are only better than Essendon and Gold Coast. What do you all think? The Bombers are 12th, and the Suns are 18th. They don’t simply struggle against the Top teams like Port. They just struggle.
 Port is different. Our overall record in the same period is good enough for a 5th place. FIFTH PLACE! Since 2016, Port’s record against clubs between 5th and 8th on the ladder is respectable: 10-11-1. (Don’t even… The 2017 EF ended up in a tie! We lost in extra-time. It’s not the same thing as a regulation loss.) Moreover, the Power’s W-L against non-Finals teams are impressive 48-12. Hence, my point.


We know what Port will give us. It doesn’t matter venue, weather, injuries – against the best, the Power will lose; against the other strong sides, it’s basically a coin toss; while we are going to beat the weaker sides. One might expect such a distribution. In the end of the day, it is somewhat true for the league as whole. However, of the 18 AFL clubs, only Port has it so perfectly balanced.


We have been the quintessential 5th-to-10th middle-of-the-ladder AFL club for more than half a decade. That’s a fact, and there are no signs this will no longer be the case any time soon. Mind you all that I'm not saying I would do better, if I were at the club’s helm. I most probably wouldn’t.
 Yet, such a regular mediocrity seems to reveal leadership issues – which would be permeating the club as a whole; from the board to the field.

This is a shame, because we have plenty of good people in there. Moreover, I'm not saying that our current leaders are bad. I don't believe that. There’s plenty of praise they deserve to receive. That which worries me is the impression there is a belief that we are on the right track. We may have been on it at some point, but that is no longer true; and those who don’t realize that, they become part of the problem.

---​

My current opinion is that some of the people we have in leadership positions would simply be out of their depth, either because they have run their course (this is more on those at the top) or because they are in roles that do not suit them (this is more on those at the bottom). If we felt obliged to retain the current structure (imagine, for instance, a family business), being where we are wouldn't be bad. Port's situation is steady, and we have been evolving – as painfully and slowly as it may have been. We would be buying time to get the succession right; and the next generation would get the house in order when their time is ripe.

We aren't a family business, however. We don't have obligations to no one due their blood or marital relations. The club is not owned by only a few. The most important thing, though, is that we are Port Adelaide, which means we exist to win premierships. Currently, we are not near enough the level we need to be to achieve that for which we exist. Yet, although we have been like this for the past 4 our 5 years, things barely changed.

Yes, we went to China. Yes, Boak is no longer captain. Yes, Thomas is no longer the C.E.O. Yes, we have added a couple of new line coaches. Yes, yes, yes; to all that. It’s all true. The problem is that these changes might not have been as substantial as we need them to be.
 After all, it is also true that China has helped us deliver a major sponsor – MG; that Boak has found himself again; that, at least, the language from the club has already improved since Richo took the office; and that our squad has been getting better. Those things point out that changes may come for the best, and that we need to keep on going with them.

Since the on-field issues remain (and some others off-field, as well), one must raise the possibility that we haven’t made all the changes we should have done. Let’s check where things have remained equal and start looking for possible improvements. No taboos. Nothing can be untouchable. If something is a bad idea, it will be clear it is a bad idea. There’s no reason to be afraid of them.


Ultimately, I fully believe that Port is better than that which we current are. We are the ones holding ourselves down. That’s unacceptable. After all, “honorable defeat of our club and guernsey can only come after human endeavor on the playing field is completely exhausted.”

---​

Can we truly argue that it has indeed been?


Yours truly,
GP

 

[Capital Power]

Uruguayana, July 8th 2021.
​

From: Paulo Roberto Tellechea Sanchotene (a.k.a. GremioPower)

...

Wish I was Brazilian and had a really cool name ... I'll never forgive my parents for calling me "Capital"

 

[GremioPower]

Wish I was Brazilian and had a really cool name ... I'll never forgive my parents for calling me "Capital"

We are related through the “Power” family, though.

 

[Capital Power]

Cheers GP your sentiments align perfectly here. My family's sick of the same speech and now goes to bed feigning sleep at quarter time. It's the acceptance of mediocrity I find hardest to deal with. All teams lose, but accepting loss means that we will never improve. A loss is a learning experience, not an occasion to trot out the usual platitudes and sweep under the carpet.

Hell, this is a Club that wasn't afraid to sack Premiership coaches - and didn't wait 9 seasons to do it.

 

[Capital Power]

We are related through the “Power” family, though.

Indeed, and like all families the weekly get togethers can be uber painful

 

[GremioPower]

I have been banned from the Ken Oath FB group for criticising Kenny.

Mate, I have already been banned from a Facebook Port-Supporting Group as well!

I said that it was time for Koch to go. Straight red.

 

[Duckimus Prime]

We are 4-22 against top 8 teams since 2016! this is a damning statistic.

Its also not true. Its not even a correct quote of the statistic. Its against top 4 teams not top 8 teams.

And considering Port have only been a top 4 side in one year during that time period you'd expect a result like that. Beating teams above you on the ladder isn't a normal thing.

 

[GremioPower]

Its also not true. Its not even a correct quote of the statistic. Its against top 4 teams not top 8 teams.

And considering Port have only been a top 4 side in one year during that time period you'd expect a result like that. Beating teams above you on the ladder isn't a normal thing.

Yep. Our record against Top-8 is, indeed, better. It’s 14-33-1.

On matches v. Top-4, we are 16th on the ladder for the period. There are 15 teams ahead of us, many who haven’t been in the Top-4 once. Only Bombers and Suns have been worse.

 

[Ray Nolan]

Hell, this is a Club that wasn't afraid to sack Premiership coaches - and didn't wait 9 seasons to do it.

We sacked the greatest player in the history of our club because he couldn't deliver a premiership as coach. How on earth we have renewed a charlatan like Hinkley TWICE when he has failed to deliver boggles the mind.

 

[PA88]

We are related through the “Power” family, though.

"Port" family.

 

[GremioPower]

"Port" family.

In this particular case, it’s “Power.” Capital Power, Total Power, and GremioPower.

 

[PA88]

We sacked the greatest player in the history of our club because he couldn't deliver a premiership as coach. How on earth we have renewed a charlatan like Hinkley TWICE when he has failed to deliver boggles the mind.

Yeah it is astounding. Our club's perception of 'benchmark' was reshaped sometime during the Boulton-Cunningham-Howie-Hobby-Choco period. In our history 'We're Port Adelaide' meant 'because we are Port Adelaide we believe that we can achieve anything'. Sometimes we didn't achieve success but we believed we could and we made choices to achieve success without a whimper. I have never agreed that this attitude/mindset of Port needed to change just because we joined another league dependent on a draft, but it has.

 

[tribey]

I said that it was time for Koch to go. Straight red.

I was told I was “dribbling sh¡t” for posting the historical timeline of Koch’s arrival in contrast to the preceding “HE SAVED THE CLUB!” monologue.

With the red rag to a bull reactions any criticism attracts, it’s like we’re in a bizarre conflated temporal displacement where for some Koch really did write a cheque for $10,000,000, Ken won back to back flags in 2013-2014, and Keith Thomas pulled on the boots and won a Showdown Medal in a mad-cap 20 minutes after replacing Burton as sub.

 

[chiwigi]

That the club is constantly struggling to 'survive' and constantly kowtowing to the AFL who knowingly keep us on life support as cannon fodder is the most infuriating and futile part of all of this.

Too many people at the club are there for a job, rather than for success it seems and will do anything to keep their nose in the trough and not upset their SMA and AFL masters.

 

[Lockhart Road]

We sacked the greatest player in the history of our club because he couldn't deliver a premiership as coach. How on earth we have renewed a charlatan like Hinkley TWICE when he has failed to deliver boggles the mind.

The Club has prematurely renewed Hinkley THREE times.

2015 - Pre-season. He was starting the last year of his initial contract. Koch and Cardone brought in Voss to replace Walsh without seeing the need to tell the senior coach and he threw a tantrum, handed over to Nicks, and plonked himself in that chair at Albury until someone gave in.

2017 - Post season. Another tantrum, again caused by Koch, a manic Koch this time. Panic meeting held at the Hinkley hacienda and extension resulted.

2021 - January. No tantrum this time. We finished minor premiers and we are a nice club led by a nice chairman whose day job depends on TV ratings.

All through this Hinkley hasn’t changed. He still can’t coach by Port Adelaide standards. But what he has become a past master at is playing the Club board and executive for the fools he is convinced they are and has shown them to be time and time again.

 

[1954]

Uruguayana, July 8th 2021.
​

From: Paulo Roberto Tellechea Sanchotene (a.k.a. GremioPower)
To: All whom may it concern
Subject: On consistency, leadership, and change at the Port Adelaide F.C.

“As Tredders said tonight
there is a major issue between the ears,
lack of belief going in to big games
has been an issue for years.”
(Portmagpies36, on BigFooty – 07/08/2021)​

Dear fellow Port barrackers,


I’m writing this out of frustration. I know. I’m 8,000 miles away from Alberton. I have no way to actually do something. I can only spill it all out, while hoping my words can inspire someone. Sometimes, they help inspiring me – on how to deal with my own personal struggles.
 Still, frustration is not everything. I’m writing this not only because I care (and I do care, a lot, probably more than I should), but because I believe these words make sense, and Port seems to need to take them into consideration.

Consistency is the key to understand where the Power currently is. During the last five or six years, while the majority of the AFL clubs have been inconsistent, there have been some consistently good (Tigers/Cats); and others, consistently bad (Suns/Blues). Only one have managed to be consistently mediocre: the Port Adelaide Football Club.


That’s probably the main issue at the moment. Port is a known quantity, but not plentiful nor wanting. We have been served the same tasteless dish season after season. It is as if Port is responsible for putting the “meh” into menu!
 There are some spice in variance; in that feeling of not knowing what is going to happen. The Power doesn’t give that. There is loads of fun being always on the Top, even in the frustrating case of teams who fail again and again to get the flag. (Yes, I am thinking of Geelong.) At Port, we have none of it. Even being at the bottom can be a good thing, since it may spark some flame and bring change – and with change, comes hope. Sweet, sweet hope. Not in Alberton, though.
 We don't change.

---​

It’s the 2021 AFL season, we are in R17, and # 4 Port has just lost at home to # 2 Melbourne by a lot. Considering the current ladder, the teams in the Top-4 are Bulldogs, Demons, Lions, and Cats. (We have lost a position in %.) Port is 0-4 against them this season. We still have another match against the Dogs to play. It might be the only way for us to get a victory against the best.


Regardless, this kind of record is not new. From 2016 to 2020, we had a 4-22 record against Top-4 teams. That’s not a typo. The record is, indeed, FOUR wins in 26 matches. These were the victories:

a) 2018/R12, 72-58 v. Richmond
​

b) 2019/R14, 67-56 v. Geelong
​

c) 2020/R11, 93-72 v. Richmond
​

d) 2020/QF, 58-42 v. Geelong​

By the way, during the aforementioned period, against Top-4 teams, we are 2-4 against the Tigers, 2-3 against the Cats, and 0-19 against all the others combined. In no season since 2016 we have had a winning record versus the Top-4 sides. The best we did was last year: 2-3.


How bad is that? You tell me. We are only better than Essendon and Gold Coast. What do you all think? Overall, the Bombers are 12th, and the Suns are 18th. They don’t simply struggle against the Top teams like Port. They just struggle.
 Port is different. Our overall record in the same period is good enough for a 5th place. FIFTH PLACE! Since 2016, Port’s record against clubs between 5th and 8th on the ladder is respectable: 10-11-1. (Don’t even… The 2017 EF ended up in a tie! We lost in extra-time. It’s not the same thing as a regulation loss.) Moreover, the Power’s W-L against non-Finals teams are impressive 48-12. Hence, my point.


We know what Port will give us. It doesn’t matter venue, weather, injuries – against the best, the Power will lose; against the other strong sides, it’s basically a coin toss; while we are going to beat the weaker sides. One might expect such a distribution. In the end of the day, it is somewhat true for the league as whole. However, of the 18 AFL clubs, only Port has it so perfectly balanced.


We have been the quintessential 5th-to-10th middle-of-the-ladder AFL club for more than half a decade. That’s a fact, and there are no signs this will no longer be the case any time soon. Mind you all that I'm not saying I would do better, if I were at the club’s helm. I most probably wouldn’t.
 Yet, such a regular mediocrity seems to reveal leadership issues – which would be permeating the club as a whole; from the board to the field.

This is a shame, because we have plenty of good people in there. Moreover, I'm not saying that our current leaders are bad. I don't believe that. There’s plenty of praise they deserve to receive. That which worries me is the impression there is a belief that we are on the right track. We may have been on it at some point, but that is no longer true; and those who don’t realize that, they become part of the problem.

---​

My current opinion is that some of the people we have in leadership positions would simply be out of their depth, either because they have run their course (this is more on those at the top) or because they are in roles that do not suit them (this is more on those at the bottom). If we felt obliged to retain the current structure (imagine, for instance, a family business), being where we are wouldn't be bad. Port's situation is steady, and we have been evolving – as painfully and slowly as it may have been. We would be buying time to get the succession right; and the next generation would get the house in order when their time is ripe.

We aren't a family business, however. We don't have obligations to no one due their blood or marital relations. The club is not owned by only a few. The most important thing, though, is that we are Port Adelaide, which means we exist to win premierships. Currently, we are not near enough the level we need to be to achieve that for which we exist. Yet, although we have been like this for the past 4 our 5 years, things barely changed.

Yes, we went to China. Yes, Boak is no longer captain. Yes, Thomas is no longer the C.E.O. Yes, we have added a couple of new line coaches. Yes, yes, yes; to all that. It’s all true. The problem is that these changes might not have been as substantial as we need them to be.
 After all, it is also true that China has helped us deliver a major sponsor – MG; that Boak has found himself again; that, at least, the language from the club has already improved since Richo took the office; and that our squad has been getting better. Those things point out that changes may come for the best, and that we need to keep on going with them.

Since the on-field issues remain (and some others off-field, as well), one must raise the possibility that we haven’t made all the changes we should have done. Let’s check where things have remained equal and start looking for possible improvements. No taboos. Nothing can be untouchable. If something is a bad idea, it will be clear it is a bad idea. There’s no reason to be afraid of them.


Ultimately, I fully believe that Port is better than that which we current are. We are the ones holding ourselves down. That’s unacceptable. After all, “honorable defeat of our club and guernsey can only come after human endeavor on the playing field is completely exhausted.”

---​

Can we truly argue that it has indeed been?


Yours truly,
GP

Great post GP, and with a name like that you should have been on the bongos when Santana performed Black Magic Woman.

 

[GremioPower]

Great post GP, and with a name like that you should have been on the bongos when Santana performed Black Magic Woman.

Unfortunately, I wasn’t born with musical genes of any kind.