PORT ADELAIDE premiership coach Mark Williams has added another accolade to his long list of honours, receiving SANFL Player/Coach Life Membership at the competition’s AGM this week.
Williams won four premierships with Port Adelaide during his playing career, which spanned 179 SANFL games (115 with Port Adelaide in 1979-80 and 1990-92) and West Adelaide (64 in 1976-78) before he turned to coaching at Glenelg in 1993 and 1994.
He won his playing premierships in 1979, 1980, 1990 and 1992 before claiming the ultimate prize in the national competition as coach of Port Adelaide’s inaugural AFL Premiership in 2004.
The 61-year-old was in 2018 inducted into the Port Adelaide Football Club Hall of Fame, giving an emotional and memorable speech to a packed house at the Adelaide Convention Centre.
Williams’s latest recognition only came under a new category introduced by the SANFL last year.
Created in addition to the existing Player and Umpire Life Memberships, the Player/Coach Life Membership can be awarded to any person who has participated in 200 SANFL games as a coach or player, or combination of both.
Six others received the honour in 2020 including dual Norwood Premiership coach Neil Balme, Sturt Grand Final coach Phil Carman and Hayden Bunton Junior - who played for Norwood and Sturt and coached South Adelaide and the Double Blues.
Former Sturt captain and coach Seamus Maloney was also recognised, along with former West Adelaide ruckman, Mark Mickan who coached the Eagles, Glenelg and West Adelaide, and Jarrod Cotton who played for Central District, Norwood and South Adelaide and now coaches the Redlegs.
Former Port Adelaide player Zane Kirkwood was among a group of players to be awarded Player Life Membership in recognition of 200 SANFL games played.
The Sturt Premiership captain was joined by South, Central and Eagles midfielder James Boyd, Eagles midfielder Scott Lewis, South defender Bradley Crabb and triple Norwood premiership forward Brady Dawe.
Mark Williams Playing Record
- Games: 380 (64 West Adelaide, 115 Port Adelaide, 135 Collingwood, 66 Brisbane)
- Goals: 377 (37 West Adelaide, 104 Port Adelaide, 178 Collingwood, 58 Brisbane)
- 4x SANFL Premiership player (1979, 1980, 1990, 1992)
- AFL Premiership Coach (2004)
- Captain of Collingwood (1983 - 1986)
- Brisbane vice-Captain (1987 – 1990)
- Port Adelaide life member (2002)
- South Australian Football Hall of Fame (2003)
- Port Adelaide Football Club Hall of Fame (2018)
- SANFL Player/Coach Life Member (2020)
- 2x Best and Fairest winner Copeland Trophy (1981, 1985)
- Collingwood leading goal kicker (1984)
- All-Australian (1980)
Coaching
- Coach of Glenelg (1993 - 94)
- Assistant Coach Essendon (1995 - 96)
- Assistant Coach of Port Adelaide AFL (1997 - 98)
- Coach of Port Adelaide AFL (1999 - 2010)
Club AFL records
- Most games coached (274)
