PORT Adelaide has five very good reasons to celebrate this week.
As the football community comes together to celebrate the AFL's Indigenous round, the Power can reflect proudly on the contribution indigenous players have made in the club's short history.
Port Adelaide boasts five indigenous stars: Peter Burgoyne, Shaun Burgoyne, Daniel Motlop, Danyle Pearce and Nathan Krakouer.
Between them, the five players enjoy two premiership medals, All Australian selection and a NAB Rising Star Award.
In all, 13 indigenous players have pulled on the Power guernsey, for a total of 831 games and 729 goals.
That record ranks Port Adelaide sixth in the AFL in the number of games played by indigenous Australians.
"We've only been in the comp for ten years so that's a great statistic for our footy club to have," Peter Burgoyne said.
He was one of four indigenous players to receive a premiership medal in the Power's 2004 grand final victory, while Byron Pickett, now at Melbourne, claimed the Norm Smith Medal.
Former Power captain Gavin Wanganeen holds the record for the most AFL games played by an indigenous footballer and is one of only two to win the Brownlow Medal.
Burgoyne said strong indigenous role-models at the club were a contributor to his ongoing success.
"When I first started I had Gavin Wanganeen and Shane Bond already at the club and they sort of took me under their wing," he said.
"Now, I'm taking guys like Danyle Pearce and Nathan Krakouer under my wing, so it's a continuing process and hopefully it will go on well after I leave."
But it's not only indigenous players Port Adelaide has embraced.
"Mark Williams has been a great coach for me and the other Aboriginal players," Burgoyne said.
"We've also got two Fijian boys here, which is another great thing our club is doing. I think we've got a couple of Croatians too and some Italian, so we've got a good mix."Drafted by the Port Adelaide Magpies at age 16, Burgoyne left behind a community of family and friends to pursue his AFL dream.
Battling homesickness, Burgoyne became a member of the Power's inaugural 1997 squad.
Now on the verge of his 200th game, the gifted 29-year old credits the AFL for developing the record number of indigenous players in the competition.
"I'm a country boy from the bush. I'd lived in Darwin and Port Lincoln so coming to Adelaide was a bit scary at first," Burgoyne said.
"Probably 10 or 20 years ago there wasn't much support for Aboriginal kids coming over, but today there is a lot of help available."
It's this common challenge that creates the close relationship we see between all indigenous players today.
While an expansive family network ensures that a great number of the players are related, those that aren't are regarded just as highly.
"It's hard to explain but it's just a special bond Aboriginal players have," Burgoyne said.
"A lot of us are family. I mean, my father's mother had 12 sisters and two brothers. But it's more just an understanding that all of us are coming from the same background with the same struggles, and it brings us a bit closer together."
Growing up, Burgoyne didn't believe it was possible he could play in the AFL until mentor Michael Long was drafted by Essendon.
Long was a former teammate of Burgoyne's father, Peter senior, back at St Mary's in Darwin.
"I didn't even follow the AFL until Michael Long was drafted back in 1989," Burgoyne said.
"Michael was my hero growing up and the things he has done for the Aboriginal players of today ... he's just an inspiration. When Michael got picked up by Essendon and I grew a bit older and wiser, I started to think more seriously about footy."
Now Burgoyne hopes he can inspire young indigenous footballers to follow their dreams.
"If the kids can see that I've made it, or Shaun, or Graham (Johncock), then that gives them a bit of hope."
