Born in Darwin into a family of Torres Strait Islander descent,[1] Francis grew up playing both rugby league and Australian rules football.
Although he did not play a senior game for Port, Francis sufficiently impressed Australian Football League (AFL) club Melbourne to draft him.
He spent the off-season playing rugby league in Darwin where he was part of the Northern Territory side in the 1995 Ansett Challenge Cup that defeated the Mascot Jets and Victoria.
A deal was soon struck between Fremantle and Francis, that he would be drafted, and he moved from Adelaide to Perth, with his family, and began training with the Dockers.
[citation needed] Since his AFL career, Francis has worked with unemployed Indigenous Australians in finding jobs in Darwin and Alice Springs.
In 2021, Francis' step-son Jason Horne-Francis, Gully's son from a previous marriage, was chosen as the number one pick in the 2021 AFL draft.