Port Adelaide great Travis Boak will call time on his AFL career at the end of the 2025 season after 19 years in black, white and teal. 

The club games record-holder, former captain and all-round good human announced to his teammates on Tuesday of his decision, with coaches, footy staff and family in the room. 

Speaking with the Adelaide media on Tuesday afternoon, the 37-year-old reflected on his career, spoke on his decision to hang up the boots, and thanked Power fans for all their support over the years. 

Boak on making the decision to retire 
“I said to the boys, it's been five years I've been considering retirement, but I just didn't want to do the speech to the boys. I was dreading it for so long. But probably the last three years, I've been saying to Mum, this will be my last year, and she hasn't missed a game since then. This year has been a challenge, for sure. My body was probably the first to go, and then my mind was pretty quickly after that. I can't do what I used to be able to do, and my passion for what's next is almost more now than playing footy, which hasn't been the case for 19 years. So it came pretty quickly. And we had the chat, I had the chat with Kenny (Hinkley) and Chris (Davies) and this was the time to do it.” 

Boak on whether he’s had time to reflect 
“No not really. Even just talking to the boys before, and thinking about talking to the boys the last couple of nights, I've definitely had some memories come through. And talking to past teammates and things like that, for sure. But I've still got three games to go, and I want to enjoy those with the boys. And as I said to them, it's a dream come true to play AFL, and I'll continue that for three more games.” 

Boak on being the games record holder for Port Adelaide 
“It's a tremendous honour to represent this footy club. From day one, I walked into this club with a dream to play AFL and to represent the Port Adelaide Footy Club for 19 years, and to play the number of games I have, it's been a dream come true and a great honour. I couldn't do it without family, the fans, my friends, but the boys as well. They've been a huge part of the journey. And I'm just so grateful to have so many great teammates and special friendships and bonds that I've made along the journey.” 

Boak on what stands out from his journey 
“I think the memories that you create through the hard times, the good times coming into the rooms after the wins and losses, and sharing those moments with your teammates, they create the bonds and the friendships that you'll treasure forever. Robbie’s milestone games, Robbie's last game, the Showdowns, the finals, all those just are great memories that I'll have for a long period of time, but the friendships and the bonds you create with your teammates, are probably the ones that I'll remember forever.” 

Boak on finishing his career at the same time Ken Hinkley departs 
“It's going to be huge, and it's going to be a pretty special day to finish with Ken. He took over in 2013 when the club was in a really tough position, and we basically bottomed out, and we needed to get back to a position we could be proud of as a footy club. And we haven't had the ultimate success, but we've done everything we can to get the club back to being a really strong club. And to finish with Kenny who appointed me as captain in 2013 and we've shared some great memories together, and to finish together is going to be really special.” 

Boak on how tough the last few years have been on his body 
“Probably the last two or three years has been a real challenge. So that's when I started to notice it most, and had to ramp up everything outside of footy to just to try and get out there on the park. But as you get older, post-30, it does get a little bit more challenging. The body this year has just really struggled with, even training, gym, there's probably no amount of recovery I could do to get to a point I want to get to. And I’ve sort of limped into a lot of games. So it's definitely been a challenge, and then ultimately your mind starts to get challenged as well, and a lot of self-doubt creeps in. But that's all part of the journey, and I'm fortunate enough to still be here today and have a few more games left.” 

Boak on how the club has changed over his time 
“I'm so proud to be a part of this footy club, and walking in here as an 18-year-old to where it is today, the growth that has been made within this footy club, the people who have come in and made a huge difference, it's been an honour to be part of. The captains that we've had, the presidents, the CEOs that we've had, they've all had a massive contribution to this footy club. You want to come in and leave the place in a better place. And we've got great leadership, with Connor and Zak and Richo, and Carry (Josh Carr) taking over next year, the club's in a good position. Hopefully success is not far away in terms of on field, but certainly the club in is in a great position off field. And for us to leave it in that way, is something we can be proud of.” 

Boak on retiring a one-club player 
“It is special. And I know I'll always get comments ‘if you came to Geelong, you could have won a couple of flags.’ But I'm so grateful for this footy club that stuck by me early days. I didn't think I'd be here longer than two years. I thought I'd be back home. So to be here for 19 years and to go through those challenges is something that I'm really proud of. I would have loved to have had a flag. I would have loved to have brought a flag to our community and our fans, but unfortunately, that just wasn't to be. But I think I can step away knowing that I gave all I did and I was a part of a footy club that has a rich history. And yeah, I'm proud of that.” 

Boak on telling his family of his retirement 
“This was the year I think they knew. I told mum and she can always tell on my face when I'm being honest and I feel at ease. And as soon as I told her, she knew that I was really happy with that decision. And yeah, I think she just said she was proud of me straight away, and they've been the ultimate support for me. I know no player could sit up and talk about their footy career without their family. They've been an incredible support for me. For everything that they've done for me, I'm just in debt to them for the rest of my life. 

“From the early days when Mum and Dad would drive me to footy. Dad was kicking the footy with me in the backyard, teaching me how to kick, not so well on my left, but more on my right. To mum hurting her knee because I needed to do some extra stuff at Torquay Footy oval. Driving to games, and then my sisters and my cousins, my aunty, my uncle, being at every game. You com off after a loss and you're devastated, but they're there to support you. They’re the things that get you back up for the next week and want to go out there and do it all again.” 

Boak on what he hopes his late father would have felt 
“Hopefully he's proud. You know, not so much of the footy that I played, and the achievements or whatever, but the person I've become. To go through what I've been through, and overcome those challenges and just step up and go again is hopefully something he's proud of, and of the human being I've become.” 

Boak on how he’s feeling about his final few games to come 
“I'm a little bit daunted by it all, because I don't want it to be about me, but in saying that, it's a great opportunity for me to thank (the fans) and embrace everything they've given me. The support that I've had from the fans for 19 years has been incredible. Nothing's been easy along the way. We've had a lot of ups and downs, but the support they've given me has been incredible, and I'm looking forward to celebrating with them for the next three games.” 

Boak on deciding to stay at Port Adelaide in 2012 
“I was just one small part of that. There were a lot of other people that committed to this footy club and wanted to make a massive change, but I'm just proud of the effort and the work that the club did to turn the place around. You know, as I said before, we were in a pretty bad position, but there was a lot of people that wanted to make a big difference this footy club, and I was fortunate enough to be a small part of it.” 

Boak on what might come next for him 
“Firstly, I'm going to have a nice holiday, a couple of guilt-free beers, and then I'm not entirely sure, but I want to stay in performance, mindset coaching, all that kind of stuff, the stuff that I've been able to learn over the last six or seven years in particular, to help my game on and off the field, outside of just the craft that we do, is something that I'm really passionate about. Hopefully I can give back in some way in that in that space.” 

Boak on how important mindset has been for his longevity 
“I think it’s huge, it’s probably 90 per cent of the game now, and the challenges that we all face, whether it's in life or sport or whatever it is, the stresses that come with that can create a huge impact on your body and your mind. To be able to deal with that, to understand where you go when you are under stress, and how to deal with failure and mistakes, and to be able to turn up again with those emotions, is something that's helped me a lot, and it's given me a lot of freedom to then just be myself, and that helps you then go out and perform and play. It almost gives you more motivation to want to improve and go do the things that are challenging and that most people don't want to get out of bed and do. So definitely the mindset space is something that's helped me a lot.” 

Boak on his message to the players 
“I really just want to thank them. I wouldn't be here today without all those boys, and there are a couple I couldn't look at. Pep (Sam Powell-Pepper) was probably the one…obviously, we've had a really close relationship over the years, and they have been incredible for me. I just said that there's been times that I don't want to come into the club and train. It gets challenging as you get older, and they're the ones that make me get out of bed and come here and want to be better. And I just wanted to thank them and then the end just for them to enjoy every part of being a footballer, because it doesn't last forever. We talk about gratitude a fair bit, and we can forget what football actually means. And we all, as kids, dreamed of playing AFL footy, and getting back to that and loving that is what's most important.” 

Boak on his ‘human being first, athlete second’ philosophy 
“That was a huge change for me around 2019 and I've spoken about a bit where, football was a huge part of my identity, and walking off the field after a win or loss created the person that I was. That created up and down performance and a lot of stress in my life, and to be able to then separate the footballer from the human was something that then helped elevate my career on field and the performance. But it made me want to enjoy it more and get back to why I was loving it, because I was a human first, and whatever the result was on the weekend had no effect on the person I was. And we get caught up in that a lot as professional athletes and people that we think we are what we do, but we're not. And getting back to that was something that then created a lot more joy around football.” 

Boak on his fellow draftees in Robbie Gray and Justin Westhoff 
“I think when we first came over, we had no idea what was going on. Me and Rob didn't talk. Hoff didn't talk for 14 years, or however long he played. But to share the journey with those guys, and Stewy (Paul Stewart) who's here as well and was a part of that draft, it's special, because we had a really good ride together. And Robbie, in my eyes, is the greatest Port Adelaide player to ever play. And Hoff was huge. And to share memories with those guys that we started with was…they're what makes footy great, you know, you create great relationships and great bonds with these players. And to start with them and have a good journey with them was special.” 

Boak on whether he might go back to play for Torquay 
“Well, I went and watched Torquay on the weekend and they knocked off the top side by eight goals, so I don’t know if I’ll get in the team. But they've said they're holding the number five for me when I get back. So hopefully I'll be back there maybe next year or the year after, depending on how my body is. But I'd love to go back to Torquay and play at some stage. It's special to our family, and it's special to me. I grew up kicking the footy after games there as a kid. And I'd love to get back there at some stage.” 

Boak on how he will focus on the last few games 
“Even this year, I've felt like different moments in games where I've just looked around at the crowd and tried to take it all in. The last couple of ‘Never Tear Us Aparts’, walking off the ground, hopefully after a couple of wins, will be really special. But yeah, I'm looking forward to thanking the fans and making sure that they feel they're a part of these last couple of games, because they've been a huge part of my journey for a long period of time. So yeah, looking forward to it.” 

Boak on where he thinks the side is heading 
“It definitely has been a challenging year on field, and we've had some things we've had to deal with, injuries and form and those sort of things. But I think it's in a great position with the young guys that we've got in this group. Connor leading the club, boys signing on still to want to be a part of it. Carry (Josh Carr) taking over next year is going to be going to be great for the footy club. So I think we're in we're in really good hands, and our fans have got a lot to look forward to. And as I said before, you want to leave the club in a good place, and it's in a really good position to go forward. And I'm looking forward to seeing what the boys can do.”