PORT ADELAIDE won’t name its side to tackle Sydney this weekend until Friday evening, but there is one name you can comfortably say will be there – Darcy Byrne-Jones.
The courageous backman will play his 100th AFL game against the Swans on Saturday, causing him to pause and reflect on his journey so far.
Had it not been for a missed team meeting two years ago, Byrne-Jones would have reached the milestone last week against the Hawks.
In 2018, he was suspended for a game for being late to Alberton, interrupting what would have been 100 consecutive games since his debut.
“It’s pretty exciting when you think about where I started from,” the 24-year-old said at a press conference on Wednesday.
“To come into the team four or five years ago and to play just about 100 straight, when I do sit down and think about it, I’m pretty proud of what I’ve done.
“But obviously we’ve got bigger fish to fry this season and it’s exciting to be in this position.”
The missed alarm clock incident has been a topic of discussion with teammates of late as the milestone approaches.
Byrne-Jones said he was able to laugh about it now, but he had learned from it.
“It’s all in the past, water under the bridge,” he said.
“We’ve moved on, I’ve moved on, I don’t lose too much sleep about it.
“You get some perspective on things and you realise what footy does mean to you when it gets taken away like that.
“I’ve been setting the alarm extra early since then but you learn a bit and it’s all part of life.”
Byrne-Jones endeared himself to the Port Adelaide faithful on debut against Essendon in Round 3, 2016 when he clashed heads with a teammate but stayed on the ground and soon after kicked a memorable goal with blood streaming down his face.
It is one of a couple of memories which stick out.
“In my first game to kick a goal, I don’t kick too many so that’s definitely a good memory and playing in that (2017 elimination) final against West Coast, obviously we lost but it was a pretty epic game to play in,” he said.
“There’s a few memories along the way and hopefully there’s a few more this year.”
Such is Byrne-Jones’ consistency, the mullet-haired half back flanker is one of the first picked by coach Ken Hinkley each week.
He finished runner up to Travis Boak for the club’s best and fairest award, the John Cahill Medal, in 2019 and has continued his form to be talked about as a potential All Australian this season.
But while he admitted it was flattering to be spoken of amongst the best in the competition, Byrne-Jones said individual accolades were not front of mind.
“I’ve only played one final in my career so my real driving force behind trying to win, trying to play well is finals footy,” he said.
“Guys like Ollie (Wines) and Trav (Boak) have played in those prelims and those finals and the joy and excitement you get out of playing finals is definitely the driving force behind my football.”
As for why he has been so good, Byrne-Jones put it down to his connection with the rest of the backline and the freedom he is given by his coaches.
“Playing consistently and playing footy with Tommy Jonas for an extended period of time, Tom Clurey, Dan Houston, Hamish Hartlett, you build a real connection together and you start understanding what the other bloke’s doing,” Byrne-Jones explained.
“That’s definitely helped my game and then Brett Montgomery has come in and he’s been really good for my footy and my attacking side of my game.
“He’s brought an attacking side to our half backs so he wants us to be aggressive and get going and get involved.
“That’s music to our ears to have that freedom and going out there with that intention has helped us to get involved and helped our ball movement.”
