AFL Finals Port Adelaide v Richmond: Power in no doubt Ken Hinkley is the man to lead the club’s developing list beyond 2021
He started the year under the pump but Ken Hinkley finished it in total control of both the team and his destiny at Port Adelaide as a new deal looms. Plus, preliminary final analysis and how the Power can bounce back in 2021.
AFL News
Don't miss out on the headlines from AFL News. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Ken Hinkley started the year under the pump and finished it in total control, both of his team and his destiny which will lead to a contract extension beyond next year.
The spotlight was firmly on the Power coach entering his eighth season after back-to-back 10th-place finishes, but a preliminary final and the continued development of the list has left the club in no doubt he is the man to continue the job.
The agreement for him to coach in 2021 was triggered weeks ago when Port Adelaide qualified for finals but his management and the club are set to ramp up negotiations on a longer-term deal now the season is done.
Watch the 2020 Toyota AFL Finals Series on Kayo with every game before the Grand Final Live & On-Demand. New to Kayo? Get your 14-day free trial & start streaming instantly >
The surety with which Hinkley has handled himself from go-to-wo this season culminated with his final press conference on Friday night when he was widely praised for the way he handled the devastating loss to Richmond.
Port Adelaide dared to dream of a flag in its 150th year this season and after finishing on top of the ladder and disposing of Geelong in its first final, it felt like the fairytale script was unfolding before its eyes.
Then it ran into Richmond, the AFL’s best team of the past four years, and for the second time in Hinkley’s coaching career the Power lost a preliminary final by a kick or less.
This time the kick was Kane Lambert’s snap around his body from the pocket after Hamish Hartlett was penalised for deliberate out of bounds when he either missed teammate Tom Rockliff or didn’t disguise an attempt to find him well enough.
The home crowd roared in disapproval and supporters were still complaining about it 24 hours later.
Yet in the immediate aftermath of the game, there was no finger pointing, no snapping, no excuses and no blaming the umpires from Hinkley.
That would have been the easy option because he knew the Power army would have been right behind him.
But Hinkley took the high road, which he has done almost without fault during his time at Alberton.
In the footy fishbowl of Adelaide, at a club which claims it “exists to win premierships” and considers finals the bare minimum to warrant a pass mark, Hinkley has proven to be a good winner but also a very good loser which isn’t always the case for coaches who live in a high-pressure, high-stakes and emotional environment.
“It doesn’t matter, the umpires paid it as deliberate out of bounds, I’m not going to judge the umpires, it’s a high-pressure game for them too and it hurts,” Hinkley said.
“We lost the game, it wasn’t one play, I never sit there and focus on one decision, everyone will because it was the last quarter and they kick a goal and it was a six-point margin but not for me, it’s a hard game to umpire.”
Underneath it must have been hard to stomach because this was an absolute gilt-edged opportunity for Port Adelaide this year.
If ever a club was going to come from 10th to claim the flag it was this season which had been severely disrupted and displaced the Victorian clubs to Queensland.
But there was almost an air of resignation from Hinkley and Port Adelaide that they ran into an almighty club on Friday night and if they went out swinging against the Tigers who are expected to join Hawthorn and Brisbane with their own dynasty since 2000 then they would live with that, but more importantly, learn from it.
“I’ve got to commend Ken and his Port Adelaide boys, they’re an incredible side and I absolutely love the way they play,” Richmond coach Damien Hardwick said post-match.
“They are a side you really fear, the way they move the ball, back their players in, they’re going to be a really good side for a long period of time.
“They will be really disappointed with the loss tonight but the are well coached, well drilled, a wonderful team.”
So much has been made of the youth emerging at Port Adelaide in the past two years led by the big three - Zak Butters, Xavier Duursma and Connor Rozee - who all looked like they were born for the big stage on Friday night.
But Hinkley was quick to point out on Friday there is more to come next year.
Jackson Mead, Miles Bergman and Dylan Williams are very highly rated and yet to debut, Mitch Georgiades will build on his eight games this season and they couldn’t hand key defender Jake Pasini a contract extension quick enough after securing him in the rookie draft.
There are no guarantees for Port Adelaide next year, as the 2014 preliminary final showed when they missed September action in 2015 and 2016.
But what is assured for fans at Alberton is that the list is in good shape and in the right hands with Ken Hinkley, cool, calm and king of the kids at the helm.
RELATED
Port Adelaide fan who threw drink on Tom Lynch banned for two years
AFL Geelong v Brisbane: Player ratings from the 2020 preliminary final
How will Power respond after another finals heartbreaker?
- Analysis by Matt Turner
The preliminary finalist that narrowly loses then vows to take the next step the following season is something of a football cliché.
It came to the fore again on Friday night when, after his team suffered a six-point home loss to Richmond, Port Adelaide captain Tom Jonas spoke into a microphone on the ground, telling the Power faithful the club was not satisfied and primed to go better in 2021.
Tigers coach Damien Hardwick was just as bullish about Port Adelaide’s future, saying in his press conference: “I absolutely love the way they play, they’re a side you really fear … and they’re going to be a really good side for a long period of time”.
But those plaudits and expectations were thrust on Port Adelaide in 2014 after a similar gutsy, narrow preliminary final defeat – to Hawthorn by three points at the MCG.
Many thought the Power was on the team on the rise and set to become a perennial flag contender, but instead it missed the finals in 2015, 2016, 2018 and 2019, and had to wait until Friday night, six years later, to make another prelim.
So what makes Jonas think this time will be different?
“I haven’t got a crystal ball but I feel like we’ve got a more selfless group, a more rounded group, we’ve got a great balance of youth and experience,” Jonas told The Advertiser.
“You can pretty much put anyone in the system and they play a selfless role in our game style that we’ve proven to do all this year.
“I think we’ve built a group and system now that can play consistent, high-quality football.
“It takes a lot to get to this point in the year.
“It’s a bit of luck, it’s good luck with injuries, it’s winning a couple of close ones – and you can’t guarantee that’s going to happen next year.
“But I think the attitude of this group will give us every opportunity to replicate it.”
Jonas was speaking 25 minutes after a campaign that unofficially started with his appointment as sole captain in December was officially over.
Less than a fortnight after being handed Port Adelaide’s famous number-one guernsey, Jonas told The Advertiser on the club’s pre-season camp in Maroochydore: “we’ve got such a young robust list, I don’t think there’s any limit on where we can finish”.
Coach Ken Hinkley dialled that optimism up to 11 in February when he memorably said “look out we’re coming” about his team aiming to win a premiership in its 150th year.
Both Port Adelaide leaders knew something the rest of the football world did not because the club exceeded expectations to finish minor premier with a 14-3 record and get to this stage.
And they did so in a season unlike no other, due to hubs, condensed fixtures and all the ramifications of coronavirus.
So Jonas straddled between gut-wrenching disappointment and pride on Friday night.
“What we’ve managed to accomplish this year in the face of a lot of adversity, we’ve stepped into all the challenges, we’ve really cherished it,” he said.
“We’ve grown closer as a group – not just the 22 on field or 44 as a playing group, but coaches, support staff, high-performance staff.
“We’ve also got to recognise our supporters and our membership, and how much we recognise the sacrifices they’ve made and they’ve stood by us.
“Unfortunately we couldn’t bring home that holy grail but I hope they can be proud of the footy we’ve played this year and the way we’ve gone about things on and off the field.”
Jonas pointed to Richmond’s 41-29 clearance ascendancy as a decisive factor on Friday night, as the Tigers flipped the script in the middle.
The Power averages more clearances than any team in the competition this season and Richmond ranks second-last but it is heading to a third grand final in four years because of its 16-4 dominance in that department in the last term.
Last time they met – when Port Adelaide prevailed by 21 points at home in Round 11 – the Power had a 40-22 clearance advantage.
“Finals footy on a wet night, in particular, it’s probably won or lost in the midfield and they got on top in the second half,” Jonas said.
“It’s obviously a great midfield but it’s a great team.
“Richmond have been the team to beat for three years.
“To be the best, you’ve got to beat the best and we weren’t able to do that tonight.
“It was a genuine arm-wrestle.
“A couple of things went their way, a couple of things didn’t go our way and they might have taken an opportunity or two and we didn’t.
“It’s really hard to evaluate right now but it probably doesn’t come to too much more than that.
“That’s the way it can go in footy.
“We’ve had some go our way – the Carlton game, Robbie (Gray) kicks one after the siren.
“Tonight, it was them who stood up.”
Jonas was looking forward to having a break and said he would likely cast an eye over next week’s grand final but watching it was not a priority.
If he does tune in, he may struggle with the battle between how close his side is to the next step and how it will not be him lifting the premiership cup in the club’s 150th year.
Jonas also might just see the Tigers emulate the type of success that Port Adelaide was famous for in its SANFL glory days, by claiming a third flag in four seasons.
Hinkley: ‘It hurts but our football club is going to be very good’
Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley says the best lessons often hurt the most and his team will learn from its preliminary final loss to Richmond on Friday night after giving it “one hell of a shake”.
“We learnt a lot this year, we said we were improving and we were coming and we didn’t get quite to where we wanted, but we gave it one hell of a shot and they should be proud of that and learn from that,” he said.
“You get these days where you get the harshest lessons but we know every prelim final you’re going to have to stand up the whole way through and we didn’t quite get there this week.
“You know to get there (win a premiership) you’ve got to go past Richmond at some point, someone is going to past Richmond at some point and we’re going to be trying bloody hard to be that team, tonight we weren’t quite ready to (do that) but if you look at the game there will only be little bits you know they had the upper hand and they got hold of it and that’s why they’re in their next grand final.”
The Power has now lost two preliminary finals by a combined nine points in Hinkley’s eight years.
“I know it (2014) hurt, this one hurt too, but every prelim is this type of game and the conditions made it even more combative,” he said.
“But you’ve got to risk the hurt and we did, we risked the hurt.”
The coach confirmed Ryan Burton re-injured his quad and was sent forward to try to play out the game, and praised Port’s kids including second-year stars Xavier Duursma and Connor Rozee.
“They were pretty good weren’t they?” he said.
“I’m optimistic about our football club, our football club is going to be very good and it hurts a bit tonight but there is some optimism and it’s not just those three who everyone talks about - the young players across our team.
“I said last year ‘if you can’t see the positivity in Port, you’re not looking’, you’ve got to be able to see it and we’ve just got to work hard to get back there again.”
MATCH REPORT: Heartbreak for Power as Tigers win thriller
Richmond is now one step away from a third premiership and an official dynasty under coach Damien Hardwick after disposing of the latest challenger to its throne in Port Adelaide in Friday night’s preliminary final.
In a heavyweight fight at Adelaide Oval, the champ threw the first punch of the game with the first two goals and led by two points at the final turn before Kane Lambert landed the knockout blow with two goals in the last quarter.
When the Power made two last desperate kicks inside 50 in the dying moments it was ruckman Toby Nankervis and full forward Tom Lynch who took the saving marks and secured their spot in next week’s grand final at the Gabba with a six-point win.
The Tigers controlled the final quarter with their work around stoppage led by Trent Cotchin who celebrated his 250th game in style while Dion Prestia and Dustin Martin were always dangerous.
It was a cruel result for the Power who have now lost two preliminary finals under coach Ken Hinkley by a combined nine points after a three-point loss to Hawthorn in 2014.
THE BIG BLOKES HAD LITTLE IMPACT
The key forwards posed the biggest threat to breaking the game open but Jack Riewoldt, Tom Lynch and Charlie Dixon kicked just three goals between them.
In a surprise move, Tom Clurey got first crack at Lynch and he was very good, making the right decisions when to stay and defend and when to leave and attack and he had plenty of help, particularly from lion-hearted captain Tom Jonas who constantly flew to give aerial support and tackle at ground level.
At the other end, Noah Balta neutralised any threat Charlie Dixon posed with a solid defensive game although Lynch and Dixon did take strong marks and both kicked a goal in the second half.
While Lambert kicked two goals in the final term, Dustin Martin did the damage in the first half, kicking a trademark crumbing goal then pushing aside Darcy Byrne-Jones in a marking contest.
YOUNG GUNS RISE TO OCCASION
Port Adelaide’s kids all stood up in the heat of battle.
Connor Rozee looked like he was made for preliminary finals. After such an outstanding first season in 2019, he never quite captured his best form for long this season but none of that mattered on Friday night.
The dashing forward was clean when others fumbled, kicked two goals and brought teammates into the game with a superb performance.
Xavier Duursma was just as good. Left battered and bruised after a concussion against Geelong, he got crunched by Riewoldt in the first quarter and stayed down for a moment, went to the bench then came back and had a game-high seven disposals in the first quarter including a goal.
Zak Butters was lively all night and didn’t hit the scoreboard but at least made Richmond’s small forwards accountable.
THE SCOREBOARD
RICHMOND 2.1 3.3 4.6 6.10 (46)
PORT ADELAIDE 2.3 3.3 4.4 6.4 (40)
BEST - Richmond: Martin, Bolton, Balta, Cotchin, Houli, Prestia. Port Adelaide: Jonas, Rozee, Duursma, Wines, Boak, Ebert.
GOALS - Richmond: Martin, Lambert 2, Riewoldt, Lynch. Port Adelaide: Rozee 2, Duursma, Lycett, Dixon, Ladhams.
REPORTS - Port Adelaide: Ladhams.
VOTES: 3: Dustin Martin (Richmond); 2: Shai Bolton (Richmond) 1: Tom Jonas (Port Adelaide).
MORE AFL NEWS
Heritier Lumumba sues Collingwood and the AFL
Originally published as AFL Finals Port Adelaide v Richmond: Power in no doubt Ken Hinkley is the man to lead the club’s developing list beyond 2021