Port Adelaide get a whiff of success but coach knows which way the wind is blowing | Jonathan Horn

06/30/2024 11:00 AM

The Power's win over the Saints in a forgettable AFL clash is likely to only temporarily release the pressure on embattled coach Ken Hinkley

It was appropriate in a way, that the final kick of the Port Adelaide-St Kilda game, the kick that secured the win for the visitors, which perhaps kept Power coach Ken Hinkley in his job for another week, and which put everyone else out of their misery, was a shank. It had been that sort of game – an error-strewn, low-scoring and instantly forgettable affair. Sometimes footy is sublime. Sometimes it is like watching a Biden-Trump presidential debate.

Hinkley choked back tears afterwards. "It's been a tough week," he told Fox Footy. He would have taken the four points any which way. During the game, he had the same look he always does – like a dad watching his kids from the sidelines. Down on the bench, he's not like Western Bulldogs coach Luke Beveridge, furiously moving his magnets and manipulating the game. Hinkley stands with his hands in his Port Adelaide puffer jacket – a cuddle here, a mild reproach there, a sip from his Pepsi Max, a shake of his head at the abominable skills on offer.