AFL Finals 2023 Port Adelaide v GWS: Ken Hinkley, the fans and what the do-or-die semi-final

Port fans have been baying for the blood and erecting monuments to Ken Hinkley in equal measure for years. They’re on his side for now but does that change if the Power lose on Saturday night?

When Ken Hinkley entered the Port Adelaide rooms after the Power thumped GWS at Adelaide Oval in Round 22, the senior coach was met with chants of “sign him up” from the fans.

Just over a year ago, one fan felt so enraged by Hinkley’s performance they plastered a blunt message over the Port Adelaide sign at the entrance to Alberton Oval.

“Sack Hinkley”, it read.

At times this year, Hinkley has joked about the fickle nature of fans and his critics as the Power went on a club record 13-game winning run.

So he is all too aware how the sentiment can change.

Imagine if the Power went out in straight sets.

Days after that convincing win over the Giants in August, Hinkley penned a widely anticipated two-year contract extension locking him in until the end of 2025.

Should the result against the Giants on Saturday night be a different one, then the tide will turn again and the questions will come.

Ken Hinkley with his team before the start of the qualifying final. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos

Why did the club set an August deadline to discuss and decide Hinkley’s future?

The Power routinely said this was to ensure it wasn’t a distraction and it would allow Hinkley and the football program the best chance of being successful in 2023.

Did the Power go too early in locking in Hinkley before the finals series?

Key Port figures have been steadfast in their belief that this was the right decision.

Earlier this month, Port Adelaide chief executive Matthew Richardson told this masthead it was important for the Power to re-sign Hinkley because of the club’s “great belief” in him and they didn’t want to create a “void of uncertainty”.

If the Power and its football strategic committee were so convinced that Hinkley was the right person then it was a valid decision to make ahead of finals.

Hinkley is a father-figure to many at Alberton and Power star Connor Rozee said players were happy he had been locked in.

“I guess it takes a bit of pressure off Ken, but we don’t talk about contracts to be honest inside the four walls,” he said on Tuesday.

“Players have had the full support of Ken the whole way through, it is great to know that he will be around for the next couple of years but our focus is on the next couple of weeks and what we can achieve.

“The security is nice and I’m sure it is great for Ken and his family and the football club as a whole to have that security.

“But our focus is on the next few weeks and what is ahead.”

The sign that appeared on Port Road last year.

What will the Power fans be thinking on Saturday night? Picture: Daniel Pockett/Getty Images

But if Port Adelaide cannot add to its two finals wins since 2014 on Saturday night, fans will be restless again.

North Melbourne premiership player David King questioned the call to commit to Hinkley after the qualifying final loss to Brisbane.

“They’ve re-signed Ken – I’m not trying to sack Ken – but these are the things you have to take into consideration and this is why we said: ‘Maybe it’s better to wait until the end of September’,” he said on First Crack.

“This is supposed to be the premiership opportunity, the window for this group. For me, it ain’t there.”

Before the season it was hard to gauge what was a pass mark for the Power in 2023.

It is a little clearer now.

The Power finished in the top four – equal second – on the back of the club record 13-game winning run.

Connor Rozee says Hinkley has the full support of the playing ground. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos

A straight sets exit would be seen as a failure by the Power and its fans, especially after some of the optimism the winning streak created.

While Port Adelaide has the “we exist to win premierships” motto, a preliminary final berth would probably be seen as a pass mark for the side this year.

The pressure is definitely rising ahead of the do-or-die semi.

“Externally I’m sure it is there but inside the football club we aren’t talking about that, we have roles and jobs to do and that is what I will be focusing on,” Rozee said.

“It is hard to not get caught up in what people outside of the football club but that is not our job.”

After falling away in 2022, Port Adelaide is back on the right track.

This should be enough for fans, ahead of a big trade period where two of the big list issues in key defenders and rucks are set to be addressed.

But should the Power’s season end on Saturday night, then the questions from the doubters will intensify.