bombers_4_ever
29 Sep 2009, 15:03
Geelong Cats lose Ken Hinkley to Gold Coast
JUST days after helping secure the Cats' second flag in three years, assistant coach Ken Hinkley taken a job with the new Gold Coast team.
Hinkley will work as an assistant under Gold Coast coach Guy McKenna after wokring with Mark Thompson at Geelong since 2004.
He will join the new club in late October as it prepared to play a year in the VFL before joining the AFL in 2011.
Hinkley applied for the Richmond senior coach's job where he was second choice behind Damien Harwick, who got the job.
McKenna said he was excited to get someone who had been involved in a team that's been one of the most successful in recent times.
“To have that sort of experience join your coaching panel it’s exciting and I think he is excited about the quality of the young list of players he will be working with,” said McKenna.
“It also says a lot about the person – being involved in the AFL system right now at the highest level - to step back and jump on in the early days when it’s a bit tough and you’ve got to roll up the sleeves. I’m looking forward to working very closely with him.”
Geelong football manager Neil Balme said that while the Cats were sad to see Hinkley go, they wished him well.
“This is a great opportunity for Ken and his family, and while we are disappointed to lose Ken, we wish him all the best in this new adventure,” said Balme.
"Ken has been an integral part of our success over the past six years, including our 2007 and 2009 premierships. Ken has served the club for 13 years as a player and coach, and during that time Geelong has enjoyed its most successful era.”
Hinkley said the list of young playing talent he would be working with was a deciding factor in his choice to move on from Geelong.
"In the current system a club gets about 2-3 young players a year to work with so it’s a coaches dream to be able to work with such a large group and hopefully help them develop into a great AFL team and club,” he said.
As a player, Hinkley played 132 games for Fitzroy and Geelong, won a best-and-fairest at Geelong and finished third in the Brownlow Medal in 1992, and was All-Australian twice.
This is great news for the Coasters.
JUST days after helping secure the Cats' second flag in three years, assistant coach Ken Hinkley taken a job with the new Gold Coast team.
Hinkley will work as an assistant under Gold Coast coach Guy McKenna after wokring with Mark Thompson at Geelong since 2004.
He will join the new club in late October as it prepared to play a year in the VFL before joining the AFL in 2011.
Hinkley applied for the Richmond senior coach's job where he was second choice behind Damien Harwick, who got the job.
McKenna said he was excited to get someone who had been involved in a team that's been one of the most successful in recent times.
“To have that sort of experience join your coaching panel it’s exciting and I think he is excited about the quality of the young list of players he will be working with,” said McKenna.
“It also says a lot about the person – being involved in the AFL system right now at the highest level - to step back and jump on in the early days when it’s a bit tough and you’ve got to roll up the sleeves. I’m looking forward to working very closely with him.”
Geelong football manager Neil Balme said that while the Cats were sad to see Hinkley go, they wished him well.
“This is a great opportunity for Ken and his family, and while we are disappointed to lose Ken, we wish him all the best in this new adventure,” said Balme.
"Ken has been an integral part of our success over the past six years, including our 2007 and 2009 premierships. Ken has served the club for 13 years as a player and coach, and during that time Geelong has enjoyed its most successful era.”
Hinkley said the list of young playing talent he would be working with was a deciding factor in his choice to move on from Geelong.
"In the current system a club gets about 2-3 young players a year to work with so it’s a coaches dream to be able to work with such a large group and hopefully help them develop into a great AFL team and club,” he said.
As a player, Hinkley played 132 games for Fitzroy and Geelong, won a best-and-fairest at Geelong and finished third in the Brownlow Medal in 1992, and was All-Australian twice.
This is great news for the Coasters.