Port Adelaide small forward Corey Durdin is excited to be back in South Australia following a whirlwind trade from Carlton late last week.
The Central District product played 64 games for Carlton since making his AFL debut in 2021 and at just 23 years of age, has plenty of football to come.
Durdin fronted the Adelaide media on Monday, speaking on how the trade went down, his upcoming wedding to partner Alexis, and how he sees himself fitting in at Alberton.
Durdin on being home in South Australia
“It’s great to be back home close to the family, and I definitely think it's going to help me and my footy. Just being back home, feeling comfortable and looking to settle down where I feel myself long term. So it's exciting.
“I think you've seen with some players, they get back home, around their family – and family is important for me – I think that with them being here close to me, whether there are challenges or whether it's going well, you always have them to ground you. I think that just being happier makes you play better. So that's the big thing for me.”
Durdin on how the trade went down
“To be honest, I found out basically right before the media post. It happened sort of three weeks ago. I asked my manager to see if there was any interest and had a good chat with Carry (Josh Carr) and Jason Cripps, just to get to know each other. They were pretty transparent. They said, you know, it might not look likely this year. We're interested, but it might happen next year, so I was not really prepared. And then I got a call from my manager and he said, ‘this thing's got a heartbeat, it might happen, it might not. Don't get your hopes up.’ And then the next day, I'm finishing gym, and my manager rang me up and said yeah, it’s done mate. You're a Port player. Absolutely rapt. All happened really, really fast. It was a bit of a whirlwind. The last probably 48 hours, it's just been plenty of messages from friends and family, just congratulating me. It’s a really exciting time.”
Durdin on the reasons for the move
“I'm getting married in November so that thought of just settling in where I guess I see myself a bit more long term, and getting back to my family and getting back home where I feel more comfortable. I was just really excited. That was the main driving factor for me. And Port was interested, and I know a couple of the other boys here. So it made it a pretty easy decision.”
Durdin on his existing relationships at Port Adelaide
“I've shared some footy with Jason Horne-Francis and Mani Liddy, those sort of guys, played some state stuff with them and crossed over a fair bit. Jackson Mead, Lachie Jones (as well) so yeah, I think that made it pretty easy for me to know a couple of people. It was good just getting it done, to be honest.”
Durdin on what he wants to bring to Port Adelaide
“Small forward is my role. I love playing that deep forward role. I know Willie Rioli obviously just retired, and that looks like a position that I can come back in and fill. I know it's not given. Nothing's given in this game. And my priority is just attacking this pre-season. A full pre-season with a healthy body and just getting to work. That's where my head's at, and I know that success is around the corner when, when hard work gets put in.”
Durdin on his fiance’s reaction to the move
“Yeah, she was happy. She loves Melbourne, she's got some great friends over there and a great lifestyle. So it all happened really quickly, to be honest. We're still just all processing at the moment, but yeah, we're just getting ready to get married in November. And then we’ll start transitioning and settling in over here.”
Durdin on his time at Carlton
“I’m super grateful. Super grateful for my time at the Blues. We had some great friendships. I lived with Jesse Motlop and Jack Carroll, who was on the list. And we've built some great memories, great friendships in my time at the club. You leave behind a lot of great people, and you know that you’ve just got to do what's best for you and for what you want. But I was really grateful for my time at the club and the supporters there, they were awesome. It's a great time for Carlton and where they're heading and I think their success is around the corner. But my sole focus is on Port Adelaide now.”
Durdin on his conversations with Josh Carr
“He basically just explained where he sees the club going. We've got a great young list who are ready to come in, and obviously some injuries affected last year. But once the list gets healthy, and I guess everyone's back on the track, we’ll be fine, we’ll compete. And what Carry was basically talking about is just looking to explore some freedom around offence and play some footy out of the back half. And for me personally, just that small forward role and what he expects of me in terms of being able to play well. There’s an element of pressure. But also on the offensive, there's some really good opportunity to be able to explore getting a bit more dangerous.”
Durdin on the wedding preparations
“I don't have to do too much, to be honest. We’ve got a wedding planner, and Alexis is doing most of it, but that's just allowed me to sort of focus on my footy a bit. So yeah, it's around the corner. All the main things are done, but just all the little details now that need to be finalised and then we’ll get to the day and really enjoy it. It's over in Victoria. It's out on this estate, just out from Geelong. So really looking forward to, it's going to be a beautiful day.”
Durdin on his body
“Body's great. I’m really excited. The last three years I've had shoulder reconstructions, so it's been a bit of a game of catch up coming into pre-season and not hitting the ground running. So this year, my body feels great and I think there's a lot of growth for me coming into this pre-season.”
Durdin on who he supported growing up
“I've had this conversation come up a bit. It's a funny one. I actually didn't really follow a footy team. I just loved playing footy. That was the main thing for me. My dad was a North Melbourne supporter, so I’ve watched them a bit. But yeah, I actually don't have a team.”
