Phil Davis Biography

Irish-born debutant Aidan Corr will replace Greater Western Sydney co-captain Phil Davis in the backline for this week's clash with Essendon at Etihad Stadium.

"I'm pretty nervous, especially having Phil out," Corr said.

"He's good on the field, through the NAB Cup he always helped me with positioning and talking to me.

"I'll have to listen to Stephen Gilham, take advice from the boys and go as hard as I can I guess."

Phil Davis will miss six weeks due to a stress-related back injury.

"Phil underwent scans and there was a fracture present so he'll be on a non-weight bearing training program for the next month due to the injury," Giants' head of sports science John Quinn said.

"We believe the injury was triggered by a knock to the lower back in recent weeks and it would continue to get worse if he played on."

GWS coach Kevin Sheedy sings the praises of Kurt Tippett, with the Giants desperate to sign him.

"A good thing about Tippett is he's also a ruckman," Sheedy said.

"He's a former basketball player and well over 200cm. Clubs are always looking at that spare ruck/forward who can come in and make it happen.

"We'll look at the opportunities to get a player like Tippett, there's no doubt about that. We've got an opportunity to pick up a good player and we should do it."

After winning the 'reverse Coleman Medal', GWS defender Phil Davis wins the 'reverse Coleman Medal' after having 52 goals kicked on him in 22 games, the most in the league ahead of Richmond's Alex Rance (48 goals, 22 games) and Port Adelaide's Alipate Carlile (47, 20).

"It's been a tough year down back and when the ball gets kicked to you a lot it's very challenging," Davis said.

"But it's also been very enjoyable and we've had some great people play in the backline alongside me."

GWS co-captain Phil Davis tells Fox Sports News that he left Adelaide before the end of last season to help his former club.

"It was definitely a difficult time for myself," Davis said.

"I was injured and wasn't going to play for the rest of the year and it got to a point where I thought I should help Adelaide with their list management."

Following their first AFL game against Sydney, Greater Western Sydney co-captain Phil Davis says his team should be proud of the exciting journey it's begun.

"I was just really proud of them and I wanted to tell them that this was the start of a fantastic journey that we can all be a part of," Davis said after the match.

"I think it was a great night for football in general. I know there was a lot of scepticism out there about how we were going to go, but I thought tonight we showed a bit of what we're capable of and I think everyone in our team can play better, which is a good sign as well.

"It wasn't our Grand Final or anything, but it is the start of a journey for us, an exciting journey that we can all be proud of."

Veteran Luke Power, plus young recruits Callan Ward and Phil Davis will lead GWS as co-captains during its debut season in the AFL.

"We think these players will provide first-class leadership and support for the club both on and off the field as we build a team that can compete for ultimate success in the years to come," GWS chairman Tony Shepherd said.

"In particular I want to congratulate Luke, Callan and Phil on becoming the inaugural captains of the GWS Giants."

An ongoing promotional tour of GWS' supporter catchment has kept coach Kevin Sheedy from meeting Giants recruit Phil Davis.

Adelaide caretaker coach Mark Bickley admits the defection of Phil Davis to Greater Western Sydney has shattered the team, particularly after Nathan Bock had left for Gold Coast the year before.

"Nathan was an All-Australian, best-and-fairest centre half-back and we lose him. Phil was our No.1 draft pick a couple of years ago, pick 10 … and he really made that position his own in a short space of time and we were really rapt that we were able to cover for Nathan," Bickley said on SEN radio.

"And now you lose Phil, so it's devastating for the players because we've got a young group and we were hoping to try and keep that group together. So when one defects it's hard to cop."

Greater Western Sydney CEO Dale Holmes insists the club has no agreement with Adelaide defender Phil Davis that contravenes the AFL rules regarding recruiting players from other clubs.

"I can absolutely categorically say that Phil Davis does not have a contract [with GWS] and if Phil Davis wished to do a U-turn tomorrow he could walk away," Holmes told 3AW.

"It's purely a discussion where we gave a guide and a principle around the terms. The rules allow for that and essentially what we're going through is at the end of the year we'll sit down with the player and work through the specific terms of the agreement."

Collingwood president Eddie McGuire accuses GWS of cheating on its first official recruit in Phil Davis after a deal had been agreed on outside of the permitted negotiation window.

"We bang on about the salary cap and all the rest of it - they're cheating on their first signing. What the hell is going on?" McGuire said on Triple M.

"I've been saying this for ages, that sooner or later this is just really going to blow up and everyone's going to do their lid on this one and I reckon this is an absolute insult to everyone in the AFL competition."

Adelaide key defender Phil Davis is the first player to confirm signing with GWS, a move which has frustrated the Crows.

"The club recognises Phil's honesty in coming forward this morning to inform his teammates of his decision, soon after he made it on the weekend," Adelaide football operations manager Phil Harper said.

"I can ensure all our members and supporters that we did everything in our powers to get Phil to stay, including putting forward an offer well in excess of any offer to an 18-game player in the club's history."

Phil Davis becomes the third Adelaide player linked to GWS and Crows coach Neil Craig says the club cannot afford to lose any of them.

"I don't want to lose Phil Davis," Craig said on.

"It would be the same if we lost Taylor Walker. I want Taylor back in form, so he can continue his AFL career and improve at the rate that I think he can.

"We'd be worse off without Taylor, and it would be the same for Bernie Vince. We can't afford to lose any of those players, but we are [helpless] because of the rules."

Adelaide defender Phil Davis will be forced to have surgery after injuring his shoulder in Saturday night's win over St Kilda and will be sidelined indefinitely.

Phil Davis suffers a dislocated shoulder after attempting to apply a tackle on St Kilda captain Nick Riewoldt and is likely to miss the rest of the season.

"It's disappointing for Phil because he's a key player for us and he's developing into an important player. I love his attitude to footy and it's just disappointing for our supporters when that sort of injury occurs," Adelaide coach Neil Craig said.

Adelaide defender Daniel Talia wants to steal the best-22 place of his mentor Phil Davis.

"There's only one spot in defence between three or four of us. Phil's probably ahead right now, but there's definitely a lot of competition. Hopefully, Luke Thompson, James Sellar and myself can push up for that spot in the senior team," Talia said.

"For a bloke that's fighting for the same position as me Phil has been really helpful. I appreciate what he does for me, but it would be good if I could push for his spot and kick him out. He won't like me saying that, but that's the reality of it."

Young defender Phil Davis now hopes to take his game to the next level in Adelaide's backline.

"I felt as though I had a pretty good run and got a lot of confidence out of what I could do last year...but centre half-back is a tough position," Davis said.

"You've got to play on a lot of good footballers and they can easily kick a lot of goals on you, but for me it's about trying to improve. Hopefully, I can improve on last year and keep on doing what I want to do. It'll be a challenge, but one I'm looking forward to."

Adelaide coach Neil Craig has kept NAB AFL Rising Star nominee Phil Davis on the outer so not to upset his team's balance for its clash with Richmond.

"I'm still keen to keep a similar structure down back. To bring Phil into that structure would change things significantly and it would take some flexibility away from us," Craig said.

"Phil will continue to play in the SANFL and continue to place significant pressure on Nathan Bock, Scott Stevens and Ben Rutten in defence. I'm not against playing Phil up forward at some stage because I think he'll end up being a very good forward."

After an outstanding shut-down job on Geelong forward Cameron Mooney, Adelaide's Phil Davis earns a NAB AFL Rising Star nomination.

"I probably want to move into a more key-position role," Davis said of his goals moving forward.

"I feel as though I can hopefully put on another five or six kilos, fill out a bit more but hopefully keep my agility if I can and keep that flexibility where I can play on the smaller opponents as well as the taller opponents."

Adelaide debutant Phil Davis was a shining light for the Crows in the side's fourth straight loss for the year against Carlton.

"There were a couple of errors I made that I'd like to improve on, but it was a good start. It was big step up and I was pretty tired by the end of the game," Davis said.

"There were a few things I did a bit wrong in the NAB Cup in terms of my positioning and knowing the team structures, but I've worked on those areas over the last four or five weeks and have hopefully become a better player."