View source for Matthew Primus

{{short description|Australian rules footballer (born 1975)}}
{{Use Australian English|date=January 2018}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox AFL biography
| name = Matthew Primus
| image = Matthew Primus 2018.2.jpg
| caption = Primus with Gold Coast in August 2018
| fullname = Matthew Richard Primus
| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1975|1|12|df=y}}
| birth_place = [[Geelong, Victoria]]
| death_date = 
| death_place = 
| originalteam = [[Geelong Falcons]] ([[TAC Cup]])/[[Norwood Football Club]] ([[SANFL]])
| draftpick = No. 2, [[1995 AFL Draft|1995 National Draft]], {{AFL Fit}}
| height = 197&nbsp;cm
| weight = 109&nbsp;kg
| position = [[Australian rules football positions|Ruckman]]
| statsend = 2005
| coachstatsend = 2012
| repstatsend = 2002
| years1 = 1996
| club1 = {{AFL Fit}}
| games_goals1 = {{0}}20 {{0}}(5)
| years2 = 1997–2005
| club2 = {{AFL|PA}}
| games_goals2 = 137 (76)
| games_goalstotal = 157 (81)
| nationalyears1 = 2002
| nationalteam1 = [[Australian International rules football team|Australia]]
| nationalgames_goals1 = 2
| coachyears1 = 2010–2012
| coachclub1 = {{AFL|PA}}
| coachgames_wins1 = 47 (13–34–0) 27.66%
| careerhighlights = *[[John Cahill Medal]] (2002)
*[[List of Port Adelaide Football Club captains|Port Adelaide Captain]] (2001–2005)
*[[All-Australian Team]] (2001, 2002)
*[[AFL Rising Star]] nominee ([[1996 AFL Rising Star|1996]])
}}

'''Matthew Richard Primus''' (born 12 January 1975) is an [[Australian rules football]] coach and former player. He has served as the head coach of the [[Southport Australian Football Club|Southport Football Club]] in the [[Victorian Football League]] (VFL) since [[2025 VFL season|2025]].<ref name="spvfl">{{cite web |title=VFL COACHING ANNOUNCEMENT |url=https://southportsharks.com.au/news/vfl-coaching-announcement/ |publisher=Southport Sharks |access-date=8 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240808074418/https://southportsharks.com.au/news/vfl-coaching-announcement/ |archive-date=8 August 2024 |date=8 August 2024}}</ref>

Primus previously played for, captained and later coached the [[Port Adelaide Football Club]]. He was also an assistant coach at the [[Gold Coast Suns]] from 2013 until 2018.<ref>{{cite web|title=Football Staff|url=http://www.goldcoastfc.com.au/team/football-staff/coaching-staff|website=goldcoastfc.com.au|publisher=Gold Coast Football Club|access-date=16 August 2015|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910131254/http://www.goldcoastfc.com.au/team/football-staff/coaching-staff|archive-date=10 September 2015}}</ref>

==AFL career==

===Fitzroy career===

====Early career (1996)====
Primus began his career with the [[Fitzroy Football Club]] in what was to be their [[1996 AFL season|final season]] in the [[Australian Football League|AFL]]. At the end of the season, he had played 20 games and kicked five goals, becoming one of their key players. Primus signed with the [[Port Adelaide Football Club]] as an uncontracted zone player during their [[Australian Football League|AFL]] establishment in [[1996 AFL Draft|1996]].

===Port Adelaide career===

====Career high (1997–2002)====
After finishing second in Fitzroy’s 1996 [[best and fairest]] and in the same position in Port Adelaide's 1997 [[John Cahill Medal|best and fairest]], Primus had established himself as one of the game's top [[Ruckman (Australian rules football position)|ruckmen]], but his close losses in the best and fairest counts would be a pointer to the bad luck he would face later in his career. [[1999 AFL season|1999]] saw Primus play only two games before a serious knee injury ruled him out for the year, yet the Power managed to improve on their combined record of 19-23-2 to reach seventh position. As his star rose as a player, Primus was also getting noticed off the field, being voted [[Cleo (magazine)|Cleo]] Magazine's ”Most Eligible Bachelor" in 1998. After the Power had a disappointing season in 2000, Primus was promoted to captain of the club in 2001, and led the team to a minor premiership in 2002 with only two losses in their last twenty home-and-away games before lack of finals experience told.

====Injuries (2003–2004)====
In 2003 Primus was hampered by [[hamstring]] and knee injuries, and only played nine games. The worst was yet to come, however, and 2004 would be the ultimate heartbreak for Primus. In his return game in Round 3, he suffered an [[anterior cruciate ligament|ACL]] rupture after his left knee bent the wrong way, requiring a [[knee reconstruction]] and putting him out of the game for the rest of the 2004 season. [[Warren Tredrea]] took over the captaincy, and after plenty of near-misses in the finals, Port Adelaide would go on to win the premiership that year, with Primus missing out.

====Final season (2005)====
In 2005, Primus made another return to the AFL. His form was not indicative of the Primus of old, however, and it seemed Port were playing Primus out of respect that he was the captain. Not only that, but Port Adelaide were not the same strong side they were just a year earlier. While they eventually had a few results go their way and managed to scrape into the finals, Primus injured his knee again in the final round of the home-and-away season. He was expected to miss only the finals series at first, but later scans revealed that he would require a third knee reconstruction. The likelihood that he would not be able to play until 2007 meant Primus announced his retirement from [[Australian Football League|the AFL]] at the age of 30.

==Statistics==
:<ref>{{cite web|url=https://afltables.com/afl/stats/players/M/Matthew_Primus.html|title=Matthew Primus|work=AFL Tables|access-date=5 October 2019}}</ref>

{{AFL player statistics legend/ruckman}}
{{AFL player statistics start/ruck with votes}}
|- style="background-color: #EAEAEA"
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[1996 AFL season|1996]]
|{{AFL Fit}}
| 12 || 20 || 5 || 7 || 163 || 137 || 300 || 61 || 41 || 339 || 0.3 || 0.4 || 8.2 || 6.9 || 15.0 || 3.1 || 2.1 || 17.0 || 2
|- 
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[1997 AFL season|1997]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 2 || 22 || 6 || 1 || 179 || 89 || 268 || 74 || 38 || 255 || 0.3 || 0.0 || 8.1 || 4.0 || 12.2 || 3.4 || 1.7 || 11.6 || 9
|- style="background-color: #EAEAEA"
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[1998 AFL season|1998]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 2 || 18 || 4 || 2 || 105 || 128 || 233 || 55 || 34 || 289 || 0.2 || 0.1 || 5.8 || 7.1 || 12.9 || 3.1 || 1.9 || 16.1 || 4
|- 
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[1999 AFL season|1999]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 2 || 2 || 1 || 0 || 9 || 5 || 14 || 4 || 1 || 28 || 0.5 || 0.0 || 4.5 || 2.5 || 7.0 || 2.0 || 0.5 || 14.0 || 0
|- style="background-color: #EAEAEA"
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[2000 AFL season|2000]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 2 || 21 || 12 || 8 || 124 || 163 || 287 || 79 || 45 || 315 || 0.6 || 0.4 || 5.9 || 7.8 || 13.7 || 3.8 || 2.1 || 15.0 || 5
|- 
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[2001 AFL season|2001]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 1 || 22 || 9 || 5 || 137 || 156 || 293 || 85 || 60 || 488 || 0.4 || 0.2 || 6.2 || 7.1 || 13.3 || 3.9 || 2.7 || 22.2 || 10
|- style="background-color: #EAEAEA"
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[2002 AFL season|2002]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 1 || 24 || 23 || 8 || 140 || 180 || 320 || 91 || 75 || 490 || 1.0 || 0.3 || 5.8 || 7.5 || 13.3 || 3.8 || 3.1 || 20.4 || 9
|- 
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[2003 AFL season|2003]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 1 || 9 || 5 || 1 || 34 || 27 || 61 || 22 || 15 || 111 || 0.6 || 0.1 || 3.8 || 3.0 || 6.8 || 2.4 || 1.7 || 12.3 || 0
|- style="background-color: #EAEAEA"
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[2004 AFL season|2004]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 1 || 1 || 4 || 1 || 7 || 5 || 12 || 5 || 5 || 11 || 4.0 || 1.0 || 7.0 || 5.0 || 12.0 || 5.0 || 5.0 || 11.0 || 0
|- 
! scope="row" style="text-align:center" | [[2005 AFL season|2005]]
|{{AFL PA}}
| 1 || 18 || 12 || 10 || 87 || 87 || 174 || 50 || 35 || 289 || 0.7 || 0.6 || 4.8 || 4.8 || 9.7 || 2.8 || 1.9 || 16.1 || 2
|- class="sortbottom"
! colspan=3| Career
! 157
! 81
! 43
! 985
! 977
! 1962
! 526
! 349
! 2615
! 0.5
! 0.3
! 6.3
! 6.2
! 12.5
! 3.4
! 2.2
! 16.7
! 41
|}

==Coaching career==

===Port Adelaide (2006–2012)===
Primus was an assistant coach at [[Port Adelaide Football Club]] under senior coach [[Mark Williams (Australian footballer born 1958)|Mark Williams]] from December 2005 to July 2010.<ref>Lovett, ''AFL Record Guide To Season 2007'', p. 227</ref>

Just over midway through the [[2010 AFL season|2010 season]], with the Power’s record getting worse week by week, Williams stepped down as senior coach after Round 15, and Primus was appointed the caretaker senior coach for the remainder of the 2010 season.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/6038/newsid/97958/default.aspx |title=Primus appointed - Official AFL Website of the Port Adelaide Football Club |publisher=Portadelaidefc.com.au |date=2010-07-11 |access-date=2010-07-11 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110616122919/http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/6038/newsid/97958/default.aspx |archive-date=16 June 2011 }}</ref> As caretaker senior coach, Primus won five of his seven games in charge, with two of them against in-form teams {{AFL Ade}} and {{AFL Haw}}, and earned numerous praises from players, staff and supporters for the job in 2011.<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/power-triumphs-over-adelaide-at-aami/story-e6frea6u-1225896749454| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100728072752/http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/power-triumphs-over-adelaide-at-aami/story-e6frea6u-1225896749454| archive-date = 2010-07-28| title = Power triumphs over Adelaide at AAMI {{!}} Adelaide Now}}</ref> The club administration had started the search for a new coach and it was believed that the Power would appoint someone who had never been associated with the club before.<ref>{{cite news| url=http://www.theage.com.au/afl/afl-news/top-assistants-in-frame-for-senior-port-job-20100715-10cog.html | location=Melbourne | work=The Age | first=Jake | last=Niall | title=Top assistants in frame for senior Port job | date=16 July 2010}}</ref> Nevertheless, Primus was appointed as the senior coach of the club for three years.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/6038/newsid/102278/default.aspx |title=Primus Appointed Coach - Official AFL Website of the Port Adelaide Football Club |website=www.portadelaidefc.com.au |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100916055249/http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/news/newsarticle/tabid/6038/newsid/102278/default.aspx |archive-date=2010-09-16}} </ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.perthnow.com.au/news/nsw/port-adelaide-football-club-chooses-matthew-primus-to-replace-mark-williams-as-coach-ng-2225b3d464549bdb4ec6034d7575dc36|title=Port Adelaide Football Club chooses Matthew Primus to replace Mark Williams as coach|date=8 September 2010|access-date=November 26, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/sport/afl/port-adelaide-chooses-coach-to-replace-mark-williams/news-story/41723f62eb23e409a10efeeeba356175|title=Port Adelaide Football Club chooses Matthew Primus to replace Mark Williams as coach|date=9 September 2010|access-date=November 26, 2021}}</ref>

In the [[2011 AFL season|2011 season]] in Primus' first full season as the full-time Port Adelaide senior coach, the side won only three games, finishing second-last, narrowly avoiding the wooden spoon with a win in the final round of the season against {{AFL Mel}}, at the expense of {{AFL GC}} in their inaugural season. He finished the 2011 season with a 3-19 win–loss record. In the [[2012 AFL season|2012 season]], he coached the team to a 5–13 record after nineteen rounds, but after the team's 34-point loss to struggling expansion team {{AFL GWS}} in Round 19, Primus was informed that his contract would be terminated one year early at the end of the season; he opted to step down as senior coach immediately, on 6 August 2012, rather than coach out the remaining four matches, and he was replaced by Port Adelaide assistant coach [[Garry Hocking]] as caretaker senior coach for the remainder of the 2012 season.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.heraldsun.com.au/afl/more-news/matthew-primus-told-he-will-not-coach-port-adelaide-next-year/story-e6frf9jf-1226443293012|first=Michelangelo|last=Rucci|title=Matthew Primus told he will not coach Port Adelaide next year|date=6 August 2012|access-date=6 August 2012|newspaper=Herald Sun}}</ref> He left Port Adelaide with a winning percentage of just 27.7%.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.footywire.com/afl/footy/cp-matthew-primus--79 |title = Matthew Primus Coaching Record and Statistics}}</ref>

===Gold Coast Suns (2013–2018)===
On 25 September 2013, Primus was announced as an assistant coach of the [[Gold Coast Suns]].<ref>{{cite web| url = http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/afl/gold-coast-appoints-matthew-primus-as-its-new-assistant-coach/story-fn6z3p5k-1226481697607| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121011032242/http://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/afl/gold-coast-appoints-matthew-primus-as-its-new-assistant-coach/story-fn6z3p5k-1226481697607| archive-date = 2012-10-11| title = Ex-Power coach Matthew Primus joins Gold Coast as its new assistant coach {{!}} AFL news {{!}} The Courier-Mail}}</ref> At the end of the [[2018 AFL season|2018 season]], Primus left the Gold Coast Suns after he was told that his contract would not be renewed as assistant coach as part of a clean-out at the club.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.foxsports.com.au/afl/gold-coast-suns-cleanout-begins-with-assistant-coaches-matthew-primus-andy-lovell-gone/news-story/8fdbdc44708738181bac63e24fbd7fc7|title=Gold Coast Suns clean-out begins with assistant coaches Matthew Primus, Andy Lovell gone|date=9 July 2018|access-date=November 26, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.zerohanger.com/gold-coast-look-to-the-future-as-the-clean-out-begins-21718/|title=Gold Coast look to the future as the 'clean-out' begins|date=10 July 2018|access-date=November 26, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.couriermail.com.au/sport/afl/teams/gold-coast/major-clean-out-begins-for-suns-as-struggling-club-looks-to-fresh-start/news-story/c8a317f783fc7eb03397c24ce73da5d0|title=Major clean out begins for Suns as struggling club looks to fresh start|date=24 August 2018|access-date=November 26, 2021}}</ref>

===Southport (2025–)===
On 7 August 2024, [[Southport Australian Football Club|Southport Football Club]] announced Primus would join the club as its [[Victorian Football League]] (VFL) head coach, beginning from the [[2025 VFL season|2025 season]].<ref name="spvfl">{{cite web |title=VFL COACHING ANNOUNCEMENT |url=https://southportsharks.com.au/news/vfl-coaching-announcement/ |publisher=Southport Sharks |access-date=8 August 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240808074418/https://southportsharks.com.au/news/vfl-coaching-announcement/ |archive-date=8 August 2024 |date=8 August 2024}}</ref>

==Personal life==
Primus married Melissa Tucker in January 2007. They have three daughters together, Skye (born April 2006), Holly (born July 2007) and Georgia (born August 2008). He is also the grandson of former Geelong Football Club player, captain and coach [[Reg Hickey]].

==Honours and achievements==
''Team:''
*[[Port Adelaide Football Club|Port Adelaide]] Pre Season Premiership 2001, 2002
''Individual:''
*[[All Australian]] 2001, 2002
*[[Port Adelaide Football Club|Port Adelaide]] second [[John Cahill Medal|best and fairest]] 1997
*[[Fitzroy Football Club|Fitzroy]] second [[best and fairest]] 1996
*[[Port Adelaide Football Club|Port Adelaide]] [[John Cahill Medal|best and fairest]] 2002
*[[Port Adelaide Football Club|Port Adelaide]] best team man 2000, 2001
*[[Port Adelaide Football Club|Port Adelaide]] captain 2001–2005
*[[Port Adelaide Football Club|Port Adelaide]] coach 2010–2012
*[[International Rules]] Series 2002

==References==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
{{commons category}}
*[http://www.portadelaidefc.com.au/ Port Adelaide Football Club]

{{Port Adelaide Football Club captains}}
{{Port Adelaide Football Club coaches}}
{{John Cahill Medal}}
{{2001 All-Australian team}}
{{2002 All-Australian team}}
{{1996 AFL Rising Star nominees}}
{{2002 Australian international rules team}}
{{1995 AFL national draft}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Primus, Matthew}}
[[Category:Port Adelaide Football Club coaches]]
[[Category:Norwood Football Club players]]
[[Category:Fitzroy Football Club players]]
[[Category:Port Adelaide Football Club players]]
[[Category:Port Adelaide Football Club players (all competitions)]]
[[Category:1975 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:All-Australians (AFL)]]
[[Category:John Cahill Medal winners]]
[[Category:Australian rules footballers from Geelong]]
[[Category:South Australian Football Hall of Fame inductees]]
[[Category:Geelong Falcons players]]
[[Category:Australia international rules football team players]]