Port Adelaide key forward Jack Whitlock is excited for his future at Port Adelaide, and has belief in where the group is headed.
The 20-year-old penned a new five-year deal on Thursday, keeping the promising tall at Alberton until 2032.
Speaking to the Adelaide media off the back of the good news, Whitlock discussed why he loves the club and how much he’s looking forward to the future.
Whitlock on his five-year extension
“Yeah, it is a big commitment. Probably since the start of the year, since the first couple of rounds, had some chats with my management. I’ve just been loving playing good footy at the moment, which has been nice to play pretty much every game this year. And then away from footy, I've been really enjoying the lifestyle of Adelaide, living here, living with Joe Berry. We've got along really well at the moment, so that's been good. And then inside the four walls, there’s a lot of belief amongst this group. So yeah, that was probably the main part of it all.
“(I was keen for the five years) just with the trust within the club. I did have a couple options, and ultimately I thought, I really like where we're going at the moment. Got heaps of faith in the coaches and the culture inside the four walls. I think we're a really tight group, and we really have a lot of trust and faith in each other. So that's probably my main driver as to why I signed on for a bit longer.”
Whitlock on falling in love with Port Adelaide
“Yeah, definitely. Coming from interstate, especially Victoria, you don't know too much about Port Adelaide. You do know they have a rich history, but coming in, honestly, you didn't know a whole lot more. So coming in, I think they educate you a lot about the history, and it makes you go out there with a lot of pride and want to play for others, not just yourself, which is really cool about this club and something that I definitely like.”
Whitlock on loving living in Adelaide
“Coming from country Victoria as well, I think that's probably a main reason growing up, it's pretty chill, it's pretty similar to Adelaide, like 15 to 20 minutes to everywhere, which is something that I really like. Talking to my brother in Melbourne (North Melbourne’s Matt Whitlock), he's travelling 45 minutes to training, so it is a bit different. I like the chill (lifestyle), the beaches. You can still do everything here, the wineries and yeah, it has a real country feel.”
Whitlock on playing plenty of AFL football early in his career
“I always had some self-belief that I could play good footy early, but to play every game this year probably wasn't what I was expecting. It has been good that I can prove to myself that I can do it. I always had that belief that I could go out there and compete at the highest level, so yeah, it has been good to show everyone else that I can do that.”
Whitlock on the support from coaches
“It's really good for the confidence (knowing they back me in). Just knowing Carry and Reeva, we go do our review, even if it is a good game, even if it is bad game, we review it the same, go through the same stuff. So, making sure I'm not getting too ahead of myself, and then I've also got that confidence that I can go out there and play against the bigger bodies and more experienced players and take it up to them.”
Whitlock on having good friend Joe Berry at the same club
“That's been really good. Obviously, playing at Murray Bushrangers together growing up, he was the next town over. So having someone come over with a sort of similar lifestyle as you growing up definitely makes it a lot easier. And yeah, it's been really cool.”
Whitlock on where he sees himself in five years
“Yeah it is a long time when you think about it, I'll be 25, so hopefully playing some really good footy and still enjoying Adelaide.”
Whitlock on whether he’d like brother Matt to come to Port Adelaide
“Oh, that would be pretty cool. He is loving his time at North Melbourne, though. So it might be a bit hard, but yeah, I’d definitely love that.”
Whitlock on Dougie Cochrane
“Dougie is super talented. I think we all know that, but probably the main thing is his personality. He’s such a good vibe around the club. He has been injured all year, which can be pretty hard, especially when you're not fully on the list at the moment. So he's done really well to gel amongst the group and get to know all the boys. And obviously his talents on the field speak for themself with his foot skills and his marking and IQ. He's been pretty good.”
Whitlock on Todd Marshall’s influence on him
“Having Todd in (without Georgiades last weekend), he's got heaps of experience, so he's been really good for my development as well. Especially last year, a lot of work behind the scenes with him. So yeah, so a lot of credit to him, and then also Viz (Dante Visentini), he takes a lot of the big hits for me and blocks and all that.”
Whitlock on his goal kicking process
“They (the coaches) have full belief in my routine. I do too. I know I can kick them majority of the time. Just a shame I didn't do it on the night (on Saturday).”
Whitlock on Brisbane this Sunday
“I think Brissy, up there especially, they’re going to be really hard to beat. So I know we can bring our best, and Carry will get us up like we always do, and hopefully we compete really well and have a good game against them.”
Whitlock on keeping morale up this year
“I think it almost comes from our younger group. We've got a lot of guys out there driving the standards, and then also the older boys like Aliir just continues to show up, do his role. Darcy Byrne-Jones, Wol (Ollie Wines) steps up. So I think we've just got a lot of guys that can just put their head over it and just step up when it’s their time to shine. So yeah, that's been really important for us.”
