Tucked away in a cupboard in his home back in Adelaide is a folded Carlton guernsey with the No.9 on the back. It’s a treasured garment Carlton’s new General Manager of Football Chris Davies once wore as a kid, in homage to one of this club’s greatest players ever to lace a boot.
“Ken Hunter was my Dad’s favourite Carlton footballer,” Davies said this week, “and that guernsey was the first guernsey I ever got.
“Earlier today I was having a coffee (in Café 1864) with Mick Agresta (Carlton’s National Recruiting Manager) when I saw a fellow seated at another table. I said to Mick, ‘That’s Ken Hunter’, and I still have the guernsey at home somewhere.”
Hunter’s appearance at IKON Park was truly serendipitous for Davies, and there is another powerful Carlton connection he also holds dear – a kindred connection sourced to SANFL club Sturt.
Davies’ father Peter migrated to Australia from his home town of Somerset in the south west of England. In South Australia he was reunited with family members – some of whom followed Port Adelaide, others who aligned with rival club Sturt.
“My father was a Sturt supporter, so obviously I became a Sturt supporter. My Dad’s no longer here, but he would take me to the games every week, which is something I look back on now and think about the role he played in my own sporting career.
“Dad used to take me to the footy to see Sturt play and ‘Mots’ (Peter Motley) was my main man, and when ‘Mots’ left Sturt for Carlton I became a Carlton supporter because he was my favourite. I was eight at the time,” Davies said.
“As time went on the interest only grew when you think of the South Australian players who joined him – Stephen Kernahan, Craig Bradley, Mark Naley and later Scott Camporeale . . . ”
In the years that followed, and when circumstances dictated, Davies and a selector core of fellow Carlton-supporting South Australian cricketers would jet into Melbourne to watch Carlton play – and IKON Park was amongst the venues they frequented.
“They were great times watching the Carlton players play well and equally disappointing when they didn’t – they’re the vagaries of sport,” Davies said.
“In those days Craig Bradley was a favourite, and I got to know Craig because of his healthy affection for Port Adelaide. I’ve been lucky enough to meet him over time and he sent me a wonderful text message the other day.
“Another favourite in the later years (at Carlton) was Lance Whitnall, a cult figure of sorts, and then there was Chris Judd . . . so it’s fair to say I’ve definitely got an emotional attachment to the Club.”
Davies’ 12 years of service to Port Adelaide as its General Manager of Football - ironically after succeeding the former Carlton footballer Peter Rohde in the position – meant that Port was well and truly the focus as he and Ken Hinkley set about ensuring sustainable success out of Alberton Oval.
For Davies, timing is everything, and at a moment when he felt the need for change, the emotional attachment to Carlton “made it doubly the right decision”.
Davies understands and appreciates that he joins a Club whose support base hankers for the ultimate on-field success “and I want that for this Club too”.
“But there are steps that need to be taken in line to be able to get there and I think the most important part is to build a sustainable program that gives you the best chance . . . and a little luck as well,” he said.
To the question “what does Carlton mean to you?”, Davies simply replied: “Together with the Sturt Football Club, Carlton was the Club that I grew up supporting. They’re the reason why I love Australian rules football.”
“I’m so looking forward to the opportunity,” said Davies, who today donned the dark Navy polo with as much pride as he did the old No.9 guernsey all those years ago.
“I’m grateful to Graham (Wright) and the Board of the Club for having faith in me as the next person in this role, and I’ll definitely do my best to help the Club and the team out.”
