Port Adelaide's Willie Rioli nearly walked away from the game during fallout from player threat ban
Rioli was suspended for a game in May and hit with fines after revelations of a social media threat to Western Bulldogs defender Bailey Dale with a further two instances of similar aggression to opponents coming to light.
He earned support from Port chairman, David Koch, who suggestion Rioli was subjected to 'culturally insensitive' remarks, which was shot down by the Bulldogs in a war of words between the two clubs.
It was putting Port in the spotlight for the wrong reasons, and the fallout from the incident moved Rioli to contemplate walking away.
'Definitely it gets to a point where it's a bit too much sometimes,' Rioli told Port's club podcast, Peeled.
'And yeah I have spoken to my manager and the club a couple of times about walking away from the game, which I am not shy to talk about.
'More so ... trying to not be putting any more pressure on the club. Get them out of the spotlight as well, in terms of not have to deal with my issues so much as a person off-field.'
Remarkably, Rioli even said he took a 'bit of the blame' for a drop off in indigenous player numbers, a feeling dating back to copping an 18-month suspension for tampering with his marijuana-tainted urine sample while at West Coast.
'I do hold a bit of blame myself a little bit for some of the stuff I have been through, in terms of clubs not trusting Indigenous players,' he said, declaring righting that wrong, and improving perceptions was why he's still playing.
'I felt that was my driver to come back to footy ... be the light in terms of 'we can go through this'.
'I look at the drop in terms of Indigenous players in the competition ... that gives me the motivation to stick around longer, to help the next generation do better than what we are doing or what I am doing.
'I want the next (Indigenous) generation to be better than what we are right now.
'And I want them to have their confidence to make mistakes and not be judged by their mistakes.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Australian
2 hours ago
- The Australian
Carl Veart appointed coach of Australia's under-17 team
'Fatigued' after a lengthy and sometimes arduous stint as Adelaide United coach, Carl Veart is set for a much-needed reinvigoration in his new role in charge of Australia's under-17 team. Not offered a contract extension by Adelaide after five years as the club's A-League mentor, Veart's services were quickly up snapped by Football Australia, with his proven ability to develop and nurture young talent – including former Reds prodigy Nestory Irankunda – a key factor in his appointment. 'I (was) quite outspoken during my time at Adelaide about providing opportunities for young players,' Veart said on Monday from the Emerging Socceroos Championships in Bundoora. 'Before I was an A-League coach, I worked in this (youth) system for eight or nine years, working with those young players, so it's something that I'm very passionate about. 'I'm also very passionate about our national teams as well.' Veart, 55, said his new role had come at the 'right time' for him. 'I spent a long time in the A-League, and I started to fatigue with that a little bit, so this is a refresh for myself, and I'm really looking forward to the years ahead,' he said. 'The difference is now I'm working for tomorrow with young players. When you're working with senior players, it's all about the result and getting the result today. 'Now it's about providing these players with a strong platform to go on and have successful careers, and it's about giving them guidance and direction to what it takes to make that high level.' The former Socceroos striker was thrilled that several A-League clubs were giving younger players opportunities to shine. 'We've always said that up to 16-17 years of age, Australia does exceptionally well, and we needed to fix that gap from 17 to 20, and I think the A-League has done that, especially in the past 18 months,' Veart said. 'It's providing more opportunities for our younger players to get that exposure so they can develop quicker.' Read related topics: Adelaide Marco Monteverde Sports reporter Marco Monteverde is a Brisbane-based sports reporter for NCA Newswire. He worked in a similar role for The Courier-Mail from 2007 to 2020. During a journalism career of more than 25 years, he has also worked for The Queensland Times, The Sunshine Coast Daily, The Fraser Coast Chronicle and The North West Star. He has covered three FIFA World Cups and the 2000 Sydney Olympics, as well as a host of other major sporting events in Australia and around the world. @marcothejourno Marco Monteverde
The Australian
2 hours ago
- The Australian
Toorak thieves allegedly steal $75k of jewellery and WWII medals
In a pair of brazen robberies in Melbourne's leafy eastern suburbs an alleged thief stole a $25,000 engagement ring alongside war medals and a further $50,000 worth of jewellery. The two burglaries occurred about 6.30pm on Friday June 27 at two neighbouring Toorak homes. Police are now urging anyone with information to come forward. The alleged thief is currently unidentified, with police releasing a new image to help identify him. The alleged thief was caught on CCTV. Picture: Supplied / VIC Police From the first property he allegedly stole a 2-carat diamond engagement ring, before forcing his way into the next-door home and taking a safe filled with approximately $50k worth of jewellery and four WWII army medals. War medals belonging to one of the victim's mothers were also stolen. Picture: Supplied / Victoria Police No residents were home at the time of the thefts. Detective Senior Constable Daniel Wall said the significance of the stolen items has made it 'particularly distressing' for the victims. 'An engagement ring carries profound sentimental worth and it would extremely upsetting to have this taken away from you,' Detective Wall said. 'The war medals belonged to the victim's mother who has now sadly passed away, so you can understand how heartbreaking it must be for this family. A further $50k worth of jewellery was also stolen. Picture: Supplied / VIC Police 'We're asking residents in the area to check their CCTV, and we're particularly keen to hear from anyone who noticed suspicious activity in the area at the time. You can do so anonymously via Crime Stoppers.' Police have released images of the stolen jewellery, which include a cupid charm, a love-heart bracelet, and a star-shaped brooch. Brendan Kearns Cadet Journalist Brendan Kearns is a cadet journalist with News Corp Australia. He has written for The Australian, the Herald Sun, the Geelong Advertiser, CHOICE, Cosmos, and The Citizen. He won Democracy's Watchdogs' Student Award for Investigative Journalism 2024 and hosted the third season of award-winning podcast Uncurated. He studied as Master of Journalism at The University of Melbourne, before that he worked as a video producer and disability worker. @brendandkearns Brendan Kearns
News.com.au
2 hours ago
- News.com.au
Wimbledon 2025: Novak Djokovic vs. Alex de Minaur
Alex de Minaur is out to spoil Novak Djokovic's party when the two lock horns in their round of 16 clash at Wimbledon. The 11th seeded Aussie will enter the contest as the underdog as Djokovic seeks to move a step closer to creating history. Djokovic vs. de Minaur preview Novak Djokovic is looking to create even more history as he chases a record-breaking 25th Grand Slam crown as the seven-time Wimbledon champion looks to break his tie with the long-retired Margaret Court. The sixth seeded Serbian has breezed dropped only one set through his opening three matches and set up a showdown against the 11th seeded Aussie by demolishing Davis Cup teammate Miomir Kecmanovic 6-3, 6-0, 6-4 in one hour and 47 minutes. His victory was not only his 100th on the historic grass courts, but also put him into the fourth round for the 17th time in his 20th appearance. De Minaur, like Djokovic, has only dropped one set through his opening three matches and knows the challenge he's set to face. 'Novak has completed the game, right? He's broken all the records. It's amazing for him to still be showing up and still showing that fire and desire to win more,' he said. 'So it's going to be the ultimate challenge, and I'm excited for it.' The winner of the contest will take on either Italian 22nd seed Flavio Cobolli or former Wimbledon finalist Marin Cilic. Head-to-head Novak holds a 2-1 lead over de Minaur with the Aussie's only taste of victory coming in the 2024 United Cup. The meeting will be the first time they've locked horns on grass with Djokovic winning one clash on clay while they've split their two hard court contests. It will be the second time they've faced off at a grand slam with Djokovic sending the Aussie packing from the 2023 Australian Open in the Round of 16.
