In today’s AFL Briefing, your daily wrap of footy news:
- Brad Scott says current players don’t see coaching as a viable career to move into once their playing days are over.
- All eyes will be on how Power coach Ken Hinkley handles this Sunday night’s battle with the rampaging Hawks
- Craig McRae stopped short of saying Dan Houston should change the way he plays, despite his star recruit serving another suspension.
McKay set for a return to Carlton’s senior side
Andrew Wu
Carlton forward Harry McKay is expected to fly to Adelaide and make his return to the Blues team for their Gather Round clash with West Coast.
According to a well-placed source with knowledge of the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, the Blues are planning for McKay to travel with the team on Thursday and be named in the 23 for Saturday afternoon’s game at Adelaide Oval.
Harry McKay at training with Carlton skipper Patrick Cripps.Credit: Getty Images
It will be the 2021 Coleman medallist’s first senior game since taking personal leave after the Blues’ shock loss to Richmond in round one.
McKay returned to action last week but ran out of time to be ready for the game against Collingwood last Thursday night. Instead, he played in the VFL two nights later, logging enough minutes to be ready for a comeback this weekend.
Should McKay line up, it will be the first time the Blues have had twin towers McKay and Charlie Curnow in the same team since round 22 last year.
The Blues have been one of the disappointments of the first month of the season, losing all four of their games to be mired in the bottom four. Chief executive Brian Cook had stated publicly before round one of the club’s aspirations to finish in the top four.
Veterans Sam Docherty, Nick Haynes and Mitch McGovern are among several Blues in danger of losing their spots after coach Michael Voss publicly questioned the standards and toughness of his players in the loss to the Magpies.
The Blues have already confirmed rookie Matt Carroll, a childhood Carlton fan, will make his AFL debut this week. Matt Cottrell completed training on Wednesday and, barring a late mishap, is set to return to the 23.
AFL coaches are ‘disenfranchised’, warns Brad Scott
Essendon coach Brad Scott has issued a dire warning on the future of the AFL’s coaching ranks, insisting current players don’t see it as a viable career to move into once their playing days are over.
In a passionate plea, Scott urged the AFL to listen to the coaches, rather than treat their issues as “nonsense”.
Essendon coach Brad Scott.Credit: AFL Photos
Scott, who formerly worked as the AFL’s football boss, claims he has never seen the coaching fraternity so “disenfranchised”.
After retiring from playing in 2006, Scott immediately found work as an assistant coach at Collingwood, before spending a decade in the top job at North Melbourne from 2010.
The dual Brisbane Lions premiership player feels Essendon are listened to by the AFL, but believes that’s not a common experience.
“In my time in footy, I’ve never seen a coaching group more frustrated with a whole range of things,” Scott said on Wednesday.
“That’s not to do with umpiring, it’s not to do with even relationships with the AFL.
“It’s more the way coaches are regarded within the AFL.
“I’ve never seen a coaching group more disenfranchised with the way they’re treated as a whole.”
AFL chief executive Andrew Dillon with South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas.Credit: AFL Photos
The AFL slashed the soft cap for football staff at the start of the COVID-19 lockdowns that forced the 2020 season to be suspended, and eventually reduced.
But nearly four years on from the last of the pandemic lockdowns, the soft cap is still nowhere near pre-COVID levels.
For 2025-27, the AFL increased the soft-cap limit from $7.275 million to $7.675 million.
“While the game is blossoming and the game is in great shape, the AFL have clearly said what their priorities are – and coaching and football departments are low on that priority list,” Scott said.
He is certain the AFL won’t be able to keep or attract new coaches if the issue is not urgently addressed.
“We won’t only lose them, we just won’t gain them [in the first place],” Scott said.
“Talk to the [AFL] players’ association about pathways for players into coaching, and their feedback is solid – players don’t want to do it.
“They see what the coaches are doing, and they don’t want to do that.
“They see the benefits in terms of the career in coaching versus the challenges it throws up, and they’re voting with their feet and choosing not to pursue it.
“For the first time I remember ever in footy, that’s happening, and that’s been talked about and just disregarded as just a nonsense by the AFL.
“Well, it’s happening. It’s going to continue to happen.”
Collingwood premiership coach Craig McRae agreed with Scott.
“The soft cap, it’s reached its boiling point in terms of our staff,” McRae said .
“And it’s not just coaches, it’s our staff.
“And right now, there’s a lot of loud voices. There’s a lot of yelling, going, ‘What’s going on?’
“There’s a lot of staff that are working long hours, and they want to be rewarded for that.”
AFL boss Andrew Dillon defended the league’s approach.
“There have been substantial increases to the soft cap over the last couple of years, post-COVID, getting back to the 2019 levels,” Dillon said in Adelaide .
“Then ultimately it’s a call for the clubs about how they divide up the soft cap amongst senior coach, assistant coaches, high performance, list managers and operations.
Scott’s plea follows his twin brother, Geelong coach Chris, on Tuesday criticising the AFL for “cherry-picking” when they clarify umpiring decisions.
Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge recently teed off at the AFL for confusion around tackling.
AAP
All eyes will be on Ken Hinkley when his side renews their rivalry with Port Adelaide on Sunday night.Credit: AFL Photos
‘I have no need to speak to them’: Hinkley’s take on Hawks rivalry
Ken Hinkley is bracing Port Adelaide for plenty of added spice in the hotly anticipated Gather Round grudge match with Hawthorn on Sunday.
The Power coach has been central in the build-up after his major role in the controversial post-script to last season’s semi-final clash.
But while he’s welcomed the growing rivalry as good for the game, the 58-year-old insists his focus is on getting 1-3 Port’s season back on track.
“We need to address our position currently, and our position means we need to do everything we can to win this game of football,” Hinkley said on Wednesday.
“That’s where we’ll spend our time, and it just so happens that Hawthorn are our opponent and it’s Gather Round.
“It’s a pretty big build-up, which we appreciate, but the reality is it’s bigger for us in the sense that our season needs to get back into some better shape.”
Port beat Hawthorn by just one point in round 11 last year and backed it up with a three-point triumph in the semi-final.
After the knockout clash, the Power were fined $20,000 by the AFL for Hinkley verbally taunting Hawthorn players.
Hinkley, whose sledging has featured prominently ahead of Sunday’s rematch at Adelaide Oval, hasn’t spoken to anyone at the Hawks since the incident.
“I have no need to speak to them, and I’m sure they didn’t really want to speak to me,” Hinkley said.
“Ultimately, my job is to do what I can to help Port Adelaide, and that’s all I spend my time on.
“Honestly, I said what I said at the end of last year’s game.
“Emotions boiled over, I was disappointed in that myself, I’ve said that, and I’ve apologised publicly.
“I think it’s time to move on for me, and I’ve got to focus on our performance this week.”
Hawthorn players clearly haven’t forgotten the way Hinkley targeted young forward Jack Ginnivan after the semi-final.
A lead figure in the Hawks’ so-called rascal pack, Ginnivan has this week suggested he has an “aeroplane” goal celebration prepared for if he kicks one in front of the Port faithful.
Hinkley expects an emotion-charged Hawthorn to bring the heat and has urged his side to be switched on from the opening bounce.
“When you ultimately lose in the end-of-season game by a small margin, clearly there’s a sting,” he said.
“The reality is, for us, we expect that to be coming our way.
“But every team who’s played them has felt their pressure, and we’re not going to be separated from that.
“We know it’s coming our way and we look forward to the challenge.”
Hinkley expects Port veteran Travis Boak to return after he was managed out of last week’s loss to St Kilda.
The Power are weighing up multiple changes for Sunday, with All-Australian Darcy Byrne-Jones sidelined through suspension.
AAP
McRae plays long game on frustrated De Goey, suspended Houston
Roy Ward
Collingwood coach Craig McRae is playing the long game with Jordan De Goey’s fitness and holding fire on demanding Dan Houston avoids bumping players.
Houston is this round beginning his second suspension in four matches for collision-based incidents and will miss the clash with 2024 grand finalists Sydney and Brisbane while serving a two-game ban.
Jordan De Goey, pictured here being tackled by Carlton’s Mitch McGovern.Credit: AFL Photos
Houston missed last year’s finals with Port Adelaide and opening round with Collingwood due to a five-game ban for a poorly executed bump.
De Goey, meanwhile, is frustrated at again having to sit out after pulling up with a sore ankle following the win over Carlton, but he will travel with the team so he can continue working to rehab the injury with team staff.
McRae was asked if Houston had to change the way he played, and he shrugged off the question.
“The incident is the incident. You could say he has to change things, but I’m not sure,” McRae said on Wednesday.
Collingwood’s Dan Houston.Credit: Getty Images
“You wait and see on those things, but missing your best players is no fun as a coach and as a team.
“I look at it as an opportunity to improve and an opportunity for him to freshen up and an opportunity for others to come in and play their roles.”
McRae won’t risk De Goey after he ended last season battling multiple injury woes, and he praised the premiership midfielder for his off-season work to build up his strength and fitness.
“It’s reasonably minor, he’s just got a problem with his ankle, but we’ve learned our lesson from last year so we are not going to put Jordy our there, where one issue can become two, and then we are chasing our tail a bit,” McRae said.
“So we decided earlier in the week to make that call and ideally get him right for Brisbane.
“He had no signs to this degree [post-game]. He had some things going on prior to the game so we decided to look after him a bit. Then he pulled up a bit sore so we’ve decided to play the long game.”
McRae hopes De Goey will return for Collingwood’s clash with the Lions, but won’t rush him back.
“We are hopeful that Brisbane is the target, but we are not sure,” McRae said.
Brayden Maynard with Collingwood champion Scott Pendlebury.Credit: AFL Photos
“That’s still the plan, and we will take him to Adelaide and take him to Brisbane with us so our physio and high-performance team are around him.
“I had a good chat to him earlier in the week, and he was a bit frustrated. It’s been one step forward and two steps back with him, but it’s round five and we have plenty of time with him.
“He’s done a power of work to get to this stage and he’s certainly in a different place body wise than he was last year.”
All-Australian defender Brayden Maynard is attracting interest from opposition clubs and McRae made it clear he loves Maynard and wants him to remain a Magpie.
“I don’t read a thing and I don’t watch much so I’m not caught up in it beyond watching Brayden perform really, really well for us,” McRae said.
“He’s much loved within our four walls and he looks really energised for us as a team and for his own form.
“We are very keen [to keep him] and I tell him daily how much I love and appreciate him, and I’ll leave list management up to others and I’ll leave his contract up to him but I make sure he feels appreciated and loved.”
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