Port Adelaide’s GM of Football Chris Davies has condemned the horrific abuse aimed at Jase Burgoyne following Sunday’s game against West Coast. 

The club is continuing to support Burgoyne, his family and fellow First Nations and multicultural players in the wake of yet another instance of racial vilification. 

Speaking with the Adelaide media on Tuesday, Davies discussed a wide range of issues including an update on the handling of racial abuse, the club’s injury situation and how he’s viewing the rest of the season. 

Davies on racial abuse directed at Jase Burgoyne 
“Yeah (we are disappointed). I don't know whether the reporting of it has become a bit desensitised, but the reality is that the people who are impacted are still impacted in a significant way. And what we saw on the weekend, maybe from getting a view of what was written, was an elevation of the issue itself. When you're talking about sexual violence as part of a text message, it takes it to another level. Unfortunately, even though that's what you're seeing publicly, maybe for the first time, I've seen that regularly. So, it does put that into some context, which is really unfortunate. It's disgusting, it's vile. You know, the people who do it clearly have their own issues. But we are absolutely going to support our players, and we're going to support the AFL into the future to chase these types of issues down. And we're having that conversation with the AFL. We're having that conversation with South Australian Police. I know the AFL are having it with their respective police units in each state, but this is an issue that clearly, we've seen a way of dealing with into the future.” 

Davies on handling instances of racial vilification 
“I think there has to be an elevation of the issue into the future. We've got to respect our players enough to make it a little bit easier for them to be able to report these types of things, and maybe in the future, some laws will have to change as well. But we’re certainly going to take the approach of elevating these issues into the future and support our players in doing that, while trying to highlight how important that is. 

“I think that the AFL will need to take a step forward in helping to manage these issues with players. I'm not forecasting a specific way of dealing with it, but I know that it gets tiring for the people who are involved and who are receiving this regularly.” 

Davies on Jase Burgoyne’s wellbeing 
“Yes, he is (considering taking the matter to the police). Again, when the issue is not just about you, but it's also about your family, it's something that's harder to take. As I say, despite the broader public maybe being a little bit desensitised to these situations, it impacts the people involved significantly, and not just Jase, but his family, and our other Aboriginal players as well. He's okay, but it takes its toll. 

“We'll support him in whatever he wants to do (in making a formal complaint), but we are 100% of the view that we need to elevate these situations into the future in order to make change. And as I say, we're having that conversation with South Australian Police.” 

Davies on the club and AFL’s role in making legislative change 
“We are, but at the same time, that process would be far more easily led by the AFL. I think the AFL has got a responsibility here to help the clubs to make these issues easier for the players involved if we're really keen to try and stamp it out. 

“I think that in the future the AFL will be doing more than they are right now, but that's not to say that they're not dealing with the current situation that they face. I think we can all do more; it's not just the responsibility of the AFL. I certainly believe that clubs can do more, and we've got to help support our players.” 

Davies on player abuse relating to sports betting 
“The number of ‘peanuts’ that I've seen messages from over time is concerning. I remember sitting in the back of the bus after a game with Trent McKenzie and Charlie Dixon, and they were reading me the stuff that they got from a couple of people who had clearly bet on the outcome of a game that maybe Trent and Charlie didn't quite get up to whatever their expectations were. And it was just phenomenal listening to it. It's just another example of the way that modern society reacts in these situations, which is disturbing. 

“They're issues that the AFL have got to deal with (relating to sports betting). We know what organisations money comes from, into our game, whether it be sports betting or broadcasts, we can't hide from it. But equally, you can do whatever you can to support the players in these types of situations.” 

Davies on injuries 
“I think it’s good news (on Rozee’s injury listed as a test). I mean, I'm not overly optimistic, we will wait for as long as we can with Connor. He may well come down with us (to Tasmania) yet, but I think he'll be a test late. 

“Jason Horne-Francis had surgery last night and he will be highly unlikely to return this year, which is disappointing. We've got some other guys who are battling different injuries at the moment but are getting through. Ollie Wines (has been dealing with a knee issue), and Willie Rioli hasn't been able to train much lately (from soreness). So, we've got a few who are grumbling, but that's where we're at. We've got a big end of the season that we want to perform for as long as we possibly can. 

“I think maybe 10 years ago, the people involved might have been asking our blokes to drink more milk or would have been worried about the collision injuries with broken bones. Typically, we will look at soft tissue injuries as the type we can manage a little bit more easily than syndesmosis, broken bones, or an ACL. Those types of injuries are hard for our high-performance department to forecast. I do think we've been a little bit unlucky. 

“We do have to be mindful of the fact that we are getting a little bit thin with the number of players that we can choose from, and we need to balance clearly being as good as we possibly can right now, with also managing our players from week to week.” 

Davies on Rozee’s potential return this week 
“I think it’ll be more about pain management for Connor, but as I say, we’ll see late. After three-quarter time (during Round 18 against West Coast), he couldn't really grip the ball at all, so that will be his challenge this week.” 

Davies on looking ahead 
“I don't think we can make too many of those calls yet (selecting younger players). We need players in form, and some of our younger players at SANFL level are the ones who are in form. It won't specifically become about picking younger players, Ken and the people who are involved right now still want to look at 2025 and the opportunity to be as good as we possibly can. There will clearly be a time when we'll fast-forward into next year, but that's not right now. We've got a great opportunity against a team (Hawthorn) who, of late, we've had a decent record against, down in Launceston this week.” 

Davies on players’ futures 
“While the world might not be aware of our decision-making, we've got some plans to see where players are at, we don't necessarily have to see them at AFL level to know if they've got a future or not. I don't think that we're going to be announcing any more contracts right now; we've done most of those. So, we'll wait for a period of time before we commit to the players who are out of contract for next year. But again, we've got a responsibility to be as good as we can be at AFL level, and if we're giving someone a go, it'll mean that we believe that they've earned the opportunity to be in our best 23 for that game.” 

Davies on Travis Boak’s future 
“I haven’t had that conversation with Travis yet. I think that Travis has had battles with injury and fatigue this year. He's playing some reasonable footy at the moment, which is a good thing for him. 

“Even in the past when we've left the (contract) situation open with Travis, the club has still had a fair amount of say in that conversation and will continue to have those conversations with Travis and his management in between now and the end of the year. But clearly, Travis is playing good enough footy at the moment to continue for the rest of this year, at the very least.” 

Davies on changes to the football department 
“We had the chat with Chad (Cornes) in order to make sure that he was clear on what 2026 needed to look like for him, and that was largely based on, number one, the fact that Chad has been such a fantastic person for our footy club, not just as a coach, but also obviously as a player. 

“He has always been really well supported throughout his coaching career by Ken, and he has supported Ken and the club really well, but when a new senior coach comes in, they get the prerogative to be looking at what changes they need to make, and we felt it was the most respectful way to deal with a delicate situation in letting him know. I have seen an email today from the coaches’ association reminding clubs that the deadline of August 1 (to advise coaches of contract renewals) is approaching, so I'm sure you'll see more movement around the competition from a football department staff standpoint.” 

Davies on Zak Butters’ future 
“Well, it won't be delayed (his extension in 2026) because he's signed a contract for next year. So no, I expect he'll go back to Victoria for a period of time and report back for pre-season when he’s required.” 

Davies on Nasiah Wanganeen-Milera’s future 
“I actually don't know the timeline, maybe the end of the year, but I'm not sure – I've got no more visibility into that situation than you all would. This is not specifically regarding Nasiah, but at the end of this year, we'll be looking at all the ways that we can improve our list. We have traded players in; we've traded players out over time. At the end of the year, you’ll see a list based on what the new coach wants. As I said, there will be more people who leave the football program from a staff or players’ perspective, and that will make 2026 at Port Adelaide look different than 2025. 

“I don't think it would be appropriate for me to talk about specifics on players' contracts. Our salary cap is well managed, we have enough money to keep the players that we want and also to get the players that we want when that time comes. Having said that, there's a few that will cost us more if they're going to re-sign with us, so how we budget for that will be interesting, but Jason Cripps does a good job of that.” 

Davies on celebrating Ken Hinkley’s tenure with Port Adelaide 
“The thing that Ken has been great at over time is focusing week to week and trying to get the best possible performance that he can for the remainder of the year. And I think that what you'll see from Ken for the rest of this season is exactly that. He has a unique ability to get the best out of a group, whether they're the most talented group or not. Most people would say that through Ken's time here, with the list that we have had, that we've been a well-performed group. We haven't quite got to where we wanted, but in his last six weeks we'll be looking to win every game, and that will definitely filter from the top down to the players.”