Port coach Williams hits back at Carlton
Ashley Porter | June 7, 2008

PORT ADELAIDE coach Mark Williams has delivered a return broadside to Carlton in the build-up to their match at AAMI Stadium tomorrow, claiming the Blues have hoarded first-round draft picks and have it easy because of their chairman Dick Pratt's money.

In an extraordinary response to statements made by Brendan Fevola suggesting Chad Cornes didn't put his head over the ball, and coach Brett Ratten claiming his team plays "inside" the packs while Port plays "outside", Williams held little back.

"They (Carlton) have three of the top 10 players playing for them, and with their draft picks over the past five or so years … well, they have just hoarded first-round draft picks and they have an outstanding list," Williams said.

"We are certainly not going to under-estimate them.

"With their resources, Dick Pratt, all the money he's got, and the resources and the things that they can do from behind the scenes, whether it's plane flights or whether it's pinching people like Swanny off Collingwood and getting his understanding of the game from Collingwood … Carlton will stop at nothing to try to achieve."

Williams' poignant comment on Carlton luring its chief executive Greg Swann from Collingwood, and repeated references to its chairman, are sure to irk the Blues.

Williams added: "And with their money … the money that has been at Carlton over the years, they've always had what they wanted."

When asked, given those factors he mentioned, whether he thought Carlton should have performed better over the past few years, Williams said: "I am not here to talk about Carlton; I'm here to talk about us."

But Williams quickly reverted to talking about the Blues, claiming the comments made by Ratten and Fevola didn't sting.

Williams said that the situation has probably heightened Port's awareness, but he seemed unsure whether Port could use that to advantage.

"It sounds good, and when the results go that way, people tend to draw that as a significant factor," Williams said. "It's all about coming to play. For our players we thought we were brilliantly prepared for playing Sydney two weeks ago and we need to deliver that sort of attack on the ball, that tackle, and hardness, and we will get the right result, and if we don't, Carlton will win.

"Brett has probably tagged us pretty well. Maybe we try to do that too often, so it will be interesting to see how the players react … it's really on our players now. That's a tag you can wear or disapprove of.

"I know that Carlton is going to be hard to beat and we are looking forward to the contest.

"They are a pretty rounded side now. They have been together for a bit of time. With their quality picks that they have had, obviously those players are going to come through."