This week’s WATN focusses on a surprise Grand Final hero who spends a lot of time in tents despite a career building much more solid structures.
Toby Thurstans has gone from a teenager in Victoria with little to no interest in interstate AFL clubs to someone with an unhealthy passion for following the AFL exploits of Port Adelaide.
Drafted from the Dandenong Stingrays with pick 39 in the 1998 draft, Thurstans went on to play 110 AFL games with the Power and was part of the side which played off in the 2004 and 2007 Grand Finals.
And while he is now completely across the history and significance of the club, it was a different story when he first arrived at Alberton.
“Gavin Wanganeen was the obvious one I knew but after that my knowledge about Port Adelaide fell away,” he recalled.
“Being from Victoria it was a big eye-opener about the size of the club and the history of the place.
“Having guys like Mark Williams and Brian Cunningham around it really helped because they were such influential figures in the club and it made you realise where the club had come from.”
As well as learning about the club, Thurstans took some time to break into the senior team.
It wasn’t until 2003 that he finally got his chance.
“The first two years I knew I wasn’t ready, especially physically,” Thurstans said.
“I had a bit of growing up to do, but then in my third and fourth years I had made the SANFL team of the year and I had been an AFL emergency 13 or 14 times in one season.
“We were only losing three or four games in a season and we didn’t have many injuries in that period of football.
“I had a few conversations with the assistant coaches to make sure everything was tracking along ok but I am a pretty cruisy person so I didn’t worry or anything and I knew the club was happy with how I was coming through.”
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Defender turned forward
As a defender for much of his career, a surprise
Behind names like Bishop, Wakelin, Cornes and Paxman, Thurstans tried his hand inside
“Through sheer necessity to get a game I ended up moving forward,” he said.
“In my first year I think Darryl Wakelin got knocked out or Stephen Paxman was injured or something and I managed to get on the field in defence.
“When they came back we were looking to fill a spot up forward and in 2003 in a couple of games I was pushed forward and did a job, which probably gave the club the confidence that I was able to play forward.
“It was purely because of the people we had in defence and not being able to get a game down back that up forward was the only spot I was able to fill.
“It worked in a few of the trial games and then I played as a permanent forward throughout 2004 which I never thought would have happened.”
Retirement
Having endured some tough times with the club undergoing a big transition following the disappointment of the 2007 decider Thurstans was mentally spent.
Aged just 29, and having booted 55 goals, he retired at the end of 2009.
“At various stages, even in 2005, I had periods where I didn’t really enjoy my footy,” he said.
“2007 was probably my best year and 2008 and 2009 were still enjoyable but I think I was really just over the scrutiny and football in general, so I think mentally I was just ready for a change.
“I had the four or five-week break after the season and it was in that period that I decided the love, the desire and
“I have no regrets that I finished early, it was just one of those things where I was ready to move on.”
He played one more season with Sturt in the SANFL, where he played on and off when he wasn’t in the AFL side while with the Power.
Focussing on a career in the construction industry, work and a lack of time to focus on conditioning started to get in the way and physically he was now spent too.
He stepped away from the game altogether in 2011 but had brief roles as a match-day volunteer assisting Ken Hinkley with match-ups in 2013 and then on the club’s player development committee.
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Building life after footy
After working in residential construction for much of his time out of the sport, Thurstans got a new job with BluBuilt Construction 12 months ago as a project manager in the commercial space.
Nowadays spending time with his wife Alana and children Darcy, 10 and Milla, 5, is his favourite pastime.
Daughter Milla has just taken up gymnastics while son Darcy is heavily involved with sport including cricket and football.
But it is in basketball where Thurstans has been enticed back into the sporting space.
He is now coaching Darcy’s Woodville Warriors District Basketball team.
“I get a lot of enjoyment out of coaching the kids' basketball but it is pretty stressful at the same time,” Thurstans said.
“It’s gratifying when you see them improve or have a win and it’s a proud moment, but they’re nine, ten and eleven and that comes with its own challenges.”
And when he’s not at work or on the basketball court Thurstans likes getting away from it all and camping.
“Just the solidarity of it all and being away by yourself or with a mate or with family, I love it,” he said.
“Whether we go to a national park or somewhere along the Murray River, we even get out to the Eyre Peninsula to Streaky Bay and Tumby Bay.”
Crazy Power passion
But he can’t shake his love for the Power and his passion to see the club succeed.
“I have still got a big soft spot for Sturt so last year was a bit tough for me when they played Port in the SANFL final,” he said.
“Chad (Cornes) was coaching the Magpies and I wanted him to succeed so I had mixed feelings.
“It’s crazy how passionate I am about the Power, though, in that I take to heart every performance and every game I am on the edge of my seat.
“I get to seven or eight of the home games and it’s something I enjoy doing with my son, and I love getting to bump into past players and catching up with them.”
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