Preview 2023 Semi Final : Port Adelaide v Greater Western Sydney at Adelaide Oval, 7.10pm ACST (7.40pm AEST)

Remove this Banner Ad

do you think Ken's time at Port comes to an end if they go out in straight sets?
I don't get all the criticism Hinkley gets.
Players develop there very well, they almost always make the finals.
The side is good, but not great, he does a pretty good job.
He may not be the best coach, but he has a much better than average record.
 
/// do you think Ken's time at Port comes to an end if they go out in straight sets?

He's already locked in for a further 2 seasons in August.
 

Log in to remove this ad.

I don't get all the criticism Hinkley gets.
Players develop there very well, they almost always make the finals.
The side is good, but not great, he does a pretty good job.
He may not be the best coach, but he has a much better than average record.
He's been here 11 years. We've made finals 6 of those seasons - a bit better than 50%. His home and away record is inflated with reliably beating up on bottom 4 teams, 100% record over Gold Coast, almost never losing to North Melbourne and St Kilda over the journey. Our record against top 8 teams is very poor (this year has been an outlier).

Most importantly we have won only 2 finals in the last 9 years, including losing every knock out final since 2014. The only two wins came in the covid affected years where we were one of the four clubs that got the enormous advantage of getting to stay home for the years and were followed up with feeble capitulations. The last two finals games have been disgraceful. The Bulldogs prelim two years ago should have received an unequivocal don't-come-Monday. This all should give you enormous confidence for Saturday night.

His teams regularly s**t the bed when it matters and this can be directly connected to the messaging he gives the players. Before last week's game he stated that finals are scary. We played like a team scared of the occasion. This was just the latest statement on the theme of 'it's a tough game and someone has to lose' that has been in place since 2015. He always makes excuses and there is no internal pressure on his players to perform when it matters. Criticism from outside is arrogantly dismissed as 'white noise'. Our game plan has been turgid since 2015 and we consistently lose in a predictable manner against quality opposition.

In terms of developing players, we have not developed a ruckman in his tenure. We have also not developed a quality tall defender. the only key forward we have remotely developed is Todd Marshall and he is mentally questionable when it matters. He has relied on individual brilliance of players like Robbie Gray and now Butters and Rozee to save us rather than having a reliable game plan and mentally prepared teams. We have relied on bringing in already developed players through trading and free agency - eg Paddy Ryder, Charlie Dixon, Aliir Aliir, Scott Lycett, et al

Apologies for partially hijacking your thread - just trying to give an insight into the Hinkley skepticism despite superficially positive results over his historically long tenure.

[MOD edit: just added some paragraph breaks for readability]
 
Last edited by a moderator:
He's been here 11 years. We've made finals 6 of those seasons - a bit better than 50%. His home and away record is inflated with reliably beating up on bottom 4 teams, 100% record over Gold Coast, almost never losing to North Melbourne and St Kilda over the journey. Our record against top 8 teams is very poor (this year has been an outlier).
Most importantly we have won only 2 finals in the last 9 years, including losing every knock out final since 2014. The only two wins came in the covid affected years where we were one of the four clubs that got the enormous advantage of getting to stay home for the years and were followed up with feeble capitulations. The last two finals games have been disgraceful. The Bulldogs prelim two years ago should have received an unequivocal don't-come-Monday. This all should give you enormous confidence for Saturday night.
His teams regularly s**t the bed when it matters and this can be directly connected to the messaging he gives the players. Before last week's game he stated that finals are scary. We played like a team scared of the occasion. This was just the latest statement on the theme of 'it's a tough game and someone has to lose' that has been in place since 2015. He always makes excuses and there is no internal pressure on his players to perform when it matters. Criticism from outside is arrogantly dismissed as 'white noise'. Our game plan has been turgid since 2015 and we consistently lose in a predictable manner against quality opposition.
In terms of developing players, we have not developed a ruckman in his tenure. We have also not developed a quality tall defender. the only key forward we have remotely developed is Todd Marshall and he is mentally questionable when it matters. He has relied on individual brilliance of players like Robbie Gray and now Butters and Rozee to save us rather than having a reliable game plan and mentally prepared teams. We have relied on bringing in already developed players through trading and free agency - eg Paddy Ryder, Charlie Dixon, Aliir Aliir, Scott Lycett, et al

Apologies for partially hijacking your thread - just trying to give an insight into the Hinkley scepticism despite superficially positive results over his historically long tenure.
And yet Port are massive favourites on Saturday.
It'll be a huge disappointment for Port fans if they can't get over us at home...it'll further compound the pressure too.
 
Most importantly we have won only 2 finals in the last 9 years, including losing every knock out final since 2014. The only two wins came in the covid affected years where we were one of the four clubs that got the enormous advantage of getting to stay home for the years and were followed up with feeble capitulations. The last two finals games have been disgraceful. The Bulldogs prelim two years ago should have received an unequivocal don't-come-Monday. This all should give you enormous confidence for Saturday night.
Cheers, no worries for the comments, an interesting insight for us.

Looking at the central matter of the upcoming game, I've highlighted an interesting stat for us. Hopefully it doesn't make us complacent, but rather adds fire to our belly that we can turn around last month's result, and come over the top of Port. It's going to be a fascinating game, however it turns out.
 

Fuelled by "why not us?" grit, GWS are daring to dream big in this AFL finals series.

While their 51-point spanking from Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval only four games ago was a stark reminder of how quickly it could all end, the Giants will take growing confidence into Saturday night's semi-final rematch. GWS won the next two games after the Port loss to confirm their finals berth and then were too good for St Kilda in last Saturday's elimination final.

Giants defender Sam Taylor admits he has thought about the potential of a barnstorming run to the grand final. "I have. I've already started to plan," Taylor said. "At the start of the year, no one gave us a chance and then we kept asking us, why not us? It's pretty simple. Why can't we do it? We're a special team and we have a belief in ourselves to get the job done."

Taylor also admitted to some surprise how they had risen so rapidly with new coach Adam Kingsley from last year's bottom-four finish. "Even though the start of the year looked pretty dire, we still had confidence in ourselves that things will finally click," Taylor said. "Kingers always said we had plenty of honourable losses on the way and we knew it was close. We didn't realise it was this close. So to finally start winning games and what Kingers has brought in has been incredible. Everyone has full belief to win every week. It's a special thing to have and hopefully we keep hold of it."

Taylor and Brent Daniels are veterans of the Giants' only grand final in 2019, when Richmond humiliated them by 89 points. "I see it less as a negative, I see it more like we've gained experience from that. It was a great time," Taylor said. "It was an awesome achievement to reach it and it just gives us more confidence that we can make it."

more in the story
 

Retiring GWS defender Phil Davis will be there riding the orange tsunami as it comes crashing deeper into the AFL finals. "We're a story of the pieces coming together. We were a puzzle that, at the start of the year, was all over the shop," Davis told Heath Shaw on Whereabouts with Heater. "We had the right pieces, but we had to get working together. Once we started to get that roll on: we played Carlton and I was so confident, Essendon I was so confident. Port Adelaide was a bit of an aberration, you're allowed one or two of those a year, we used our card up then."

And, with the season on the line, it's a Giants ruckman who Davis sees as a pivotal piece of the puzzle. "Let's exclude Toby [Greene] and I'm also going to exclude Sam Taylor... you've got a key pillar down back, and probably the best player in the comp in your forward line, let's remove those," he said. "I personally think it's going to have to be Kieren Briggs. Territory is so important, and if you've got a ruck who can help you win clearances, get the ball forward, and set the game up... if you can get the ball in our forward line, we're scoring from turnover so well. Briggs and the midfield more broadly, Coniglio, Kelly and the like, are gonna have a big role because we have to play the ball in our half," Davis continued. "That's when we're at our best."

more in the story
 

GWS CEO Dave Matthews has confirmed that Stephen Coniglio will return for Saturday’s Semi Final against Port Adelaide at the Adelaide Oval.

Coniglio was a late out for GWS’ 24-point Elimination Final win over St Kilda at the MCG last weekend with an eye injury. Matthews says it was a “freak thing” that Coniglio was hit in the eye during training in the lead-up to the game, but he says he’s now ready to go. “Yes, he will (play),” Matthews told SEN Sportsday. “He was very close on Saturday. It was just a bit of a freak thing. There was a bit of an eye issue, but he's fine.”

more in the story
 
Great to be at full strength again for such an important game. Intrigued to see who will make way for Cogs, I think Cumming could be the unlucky one as XO's skillset might be more valuable in this match-up.
 
Interesting contrast between the two clubs' preview boards.

We've exceeded expectations, so no pressure, and it's more a case of "can we?", excited & hopeful, but positive about the future in any event.

Port's board is very doom and gloom; even if they beat us they expect to get rolled by Pies. They know they should beat us based on H&A ladder positions, but are fearful of not doing so, and going out in straight sets.

Hopefully the players are feeling the same freedom, and Post's players the same pressure.
 
Interesting contrast between the two clubs' preview boards.

We've exceeded expectations, so no pressure, and it's more a case of "can we?", excited & hopeful, but positive about the future in any event.

Port's board is very doom and gloom; even if they beat us they expect to get rolled by Pies. They know they should beat us based on H&A ladder positions, but are fearful of not doing so, and going out in straight sets.

Hopefully the players are feeling the same freedom, and Post's players the same pressure.
We're playing with house money - made finals and won a final on top of that. A win will be most excellent but we're already on Cloud 9.

Port went into last week feeling pretty good but now feel like that even if they win this they're up for embarrassment in the next fortnight. There's only doom and gloom in their future and they're awaiting its arrival.
 
Interesting contrast between the two clubs' preview boards.

We've exceeded expectations, so no pressure, and it's more a case of "can we?", excited & hopeful, but positive about the future in any event.

Port's board is very doom and gloom; even if they beat us they expect to get rolled by Pies. They know they should beat us based on H&A ladder positions, but are fearful of not doing so, and going out in straight sets.

Hopefully the players are feeling the same freedom, and Post's players the same pressure.
Their board is a shocker, but let's not pretend that Port are going to do anything other than go all out to win this. We'll need to play like loaded springs to have a chance.
 

(Log in to remove this ad.)

Port need to be ahead by 4+ goals at the half to be a chance - we're coming over the top in the second half and it will be glorious

Eddy's tears await next weekend
 


Match Details

Port Adelaide v GIANTS
Saturday, September 16 at 7:10pm CST/7:40pm EST
Adelaide Oval | Kaurna Country

Team:

FB: Jack Buckley, Sam Taylor, Connor Idun
HB: Lachie Ash, Harry Himmelberg, Lachie Whitfield
C: Finn Callaghan, Tom Green, Josh Kelly
HF: Toby Bedford, Jake Riccardi, Brent Daniels
FF: Daniel Lloyd, Jesse Hogan, Toby Greene
RR: Kieren Briggs, Callan Ward, Stephen Coniglio

Interchange: Isaac Cumming, Harry Perryman, Lachlan Keeffe, Callum Brown

In: Stephen Coniglio
Out: Xavier O’Halloran (omitted)

Emergencies: Nick Haynes, Ryan Angwin, Xavier O’Halloran, Braydon Preuss
 
XOH stiff but understandable. He was a very serviceable fill in.

I wonder if he's a chance to be the sub.
From the article Giant Strides just posted it sounds like that's the only selection dilemma they have right now. Haynes or XOH as sub.

I'm of two minds about it. Haynes is a handy and versatile sub who can cover a lot of positions in case there's an injury. He's tall and can take a strong mark, good if we're trying to defend a lead in the last quarter.

On the other hand if there's no injuries then I actually think XOH would make a better impact sub. He could come in for the last quarter and provide lots of run, tackling and pressure. Could help get us over the line if we're chasing a lead.
 

Remove this Banner Ad

Back
Top