Cornes responds after copping stray from Carr

Chad Cornes has responded after copping a stray from Port Adelaide coach Josh Carr on Thursday.

The former Port assistant recently said that he believes Mitch Georgiades will leave Alberton for West Coast at the end of 2027.

Carr was asked at his press conference on Thursday if he reckons Georgiades would up and leave the Power, dousing the comments from Cornes.

“It’s definitely not my impression,” Carr said.

“‘George’ is contracted and he’s got a fair bit to go on that contract and he’s happy at this football club.

“I wouldn’t have thought Chad and Mitch would have had a conversation about what he wants to do. He would have no idea about what Mitch actually wants to do, it’s a guessing game.

“I think it’s pretty easy to say when we’ve lost a couple of games, people look in and say you shouldn’t have lost those games, all of a sudden it looks like no one wants to be at our football club.

“That’s wrong.”

Cornes, a Port Hall of Famer, reacted to those comments by denying Carr’s claims that he wouldn’t have spoken to Georgiades about his future.

“My phone blew up there for a minute,” Cornes said on SEN SA’s The Run Home.

“Josh was asked about my comments about Mitch and his answer was interesting. Josh can believe whatever he wants but he said I would have no idea in what Mitch is going to do going forward.

“All I’ll say to that is I coached Mitch for three years and I spoke to him daily.”

Carr’s 2004 premiership teammate and fellow former Power assistant admits he’d love to see Georgiades continue in the black, white and teal.

It was just Cornes’ opinion that the key forward will head home when his contract is done.

“He can believe whatever he wants, but to say I wasn’t always having conversations with Mitchell about all parts of his life is wrong,” Cornes said further.

“It’s an opinion and I hope Mitchell stays. I love Mitchell and I hope he sees out his career at Port.”

Georgiades is contracted with Port until the end of 2027.

And his manager, Tom Seccull from Corporate Sports Australia, says his client is completely committed at his current club.

Seccull suggests the Power are eager to extend the Pick 18 from the 2019 draft.

“Early signs are yeah, absolutely. He’s a part of their future and Mitch feels connected in the group and as a leader at that football club,” Seccull said on SEN’s Captain’s Run.

“Mitch is committed and he’s going to work through all those steps as they come.

“Mitch is contracted obviously until the end of next year. From his perspective he’s shown nothing but commitment to the Port Adelaide Football Club his whole career. That’s where it lies at the moment.

“Obviously he’ll have some decisions to make over the course of the next 18 months really. But where that sits at the moment is he’s committed to Port Adelaide, he’s contracted.

“We’re in constant dialogue, I just came from a meeting with (Port list boss) Jason Cripps now. Mitch is really excited about what Josh is doing at the helm and the potential changing of the guard there.

“Hopefully they can get a good run-on this year and Mitch’s form can continue.”

The 24-year-old Western Australian has kicked 10 goals from four outings in 2026 for a career total of 177 majors in 96 appearances.