Scape Goat I've lost my faith in Ken Hinkley Part 2

[tribey]

I think this is like the fat Personal Trainer (Moobs Falloon). You don't have to be as fit as your charges, but you need to show that you can still relate to what you're putting them through.

Falloon was a picture of health, the previous bloke who took over after Burgess left us in the middle of the preseason was the moob-endowed gent.

 

[GremioPower]

But there's an article someone in the universe that says different. But no one can find it.

Tree in the woods blah blah

Even if it is true that the plan is Nicks', ultimately, the responsibility is Hinkley's.

 

[Magus]

I went to the Members Convention and there was a s**t load to absorb, but one thing that was crystal clear, all day long, was - Ken is in charge and he had the final say - No If's or but's about it. Ken said it. Voss said it. Bassett said it. Lade said it. Nicks said it. Greaves said it. Davies said it.

After supposedly threatening to walk out on the club, I dont believe that Ken said, yeah I will let Nicks run things. If he did and that's what happened in 2018, then that Members Convention was all complete and utter f**king bullshit.

And I am getting sick and tired of the complete and utter f**king bullshit.

No I in team, but there is in champion. We don't have enough champions at the club, across all departments who are prepared to say;

I f**ked up!

I got it wrong!

I have to do better!

I wasn't good enough!

I have to be smarter!

I have to take responsibility!

I have to take charge!

I have to improve!

I have to lead when the chips are down!

I am sick of being flaky and losing and I am going to change that!

But Rucci had an article where he said a thing.

 

[Adam Marrett23]

I went to the Members Convention and there was a s**t load to absorb, but one thing that was crystal clear, all day long, was - Ken is in charge and he had the final say - No If's or but's about it. Ken said it. Voss said it. Bassett said it. Lade said it. Nicks said it. Greaves said it. Davies said it.

After supposedly threatening to walk out on the club, I dont believe that Ken said, yeah I will let Nicks run things. If he did and that's what happened in 2018, then that Members Convention was all complete and utter f**king bullshit.

And I am getting sick and tired of the complete and utter f**king bullshit.

No I in team, but there is in champion. We don't have enough champions at the club, across all departments who are prepared to say;

I f**ked up!

I got it wrong!

I have to do better!

I wasn't good enough!

I have to be smarter!

I have to take responsibility!

I have to take charge!

I have to improve!

I have to lead when the chips are down!

I am sick of being flaky and losing and I am going to change that!

It's always been Ken's gameplan, from day dot for this year, I was there as well and heard the exact same thing, it isn't uncommon knowledge.

The Members Convention proved it, there is no doubt of it and never has been. The assistants work to his plan, how anyone can even think otherwise astounds me.

There is no Rucci article saying the gameplan was Nicks idea blah blah. It's always been Ken's, and going forward it all rests on Ken as well. Clear as day, he is the senior coach.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

But Rucci had an article where he said a thing.

This one?

Matthew Nicks steps up to ’senior assistant’ as Ken Hinkley starts fifth season without coaching director
Michelangelo Rucci, Chief Football Writer, The Advertiser
November 5, 2016 12:00am

KEN Hinkley’s coaching panel at Port Adelaide is locked — with no coaching director and Matthew Nicks being promoted to the new role of “senior assistant”. Hinkley will work with three “line coaches” next season — Brendon Lade returning from Richmond to be the Power’s ruck and forwards coach; Nathan Bassett retaining defence for his second year at Alberton and Brownlow Medallist Michael Voss continuing to manage the Power midfield for his third season.

Each zone coach will have a lieutenant — Stuart Cochrane (midfield), Trent Hentschel (forwards) and Jacob Surjan (defence). Chad Cornes remains as the Port Adelaide Magpies (SANFL) coach working in tandem with the Power AFL program.

There will be no other appointment to Hinkley’s panel, with Port Adelaide not chasing former Western Bulldogs assistant coach Brent Montgomery for a return to Alberton, as has been long speculated. Hinkley will start his fifth AFL season as a senior coach with no coaching director, as he had on arrival at Alberton in 2013 with Alan Richardson (now at St Kilda) and, in the past three years, with Shaun Hart.

The responsibilities from that senior portfolio will be taken up by Nicks, who will lead the Power’s analysis of opposition teams, and football chief Chris Davies. This is another significant statement on Nicks, who last year in the 2015 NAB Challenge pre-season took charge of the Power team for two practice games. The former Sydney player steps away from coaching Port Adelaide’s forwards to leave that assignment to Lade. Nicks, regarded as an AFL senior coach in the making, has been at Alberton since 2011 working in the development program (2011-12), as defence coach (2013-15) and as forwards coach in the past season. He will now be Hinkley’s right-hand man and key analyst on opposition teams and game trends. Hinkley’s coaching panel loses two staffers from this year. Hart has taken up a newly created role as the Port Adelaide’s director of academies. Midfield assistant Garry Hocking has left the club after not having his contract renewed....... then talks about Adelaide

https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/spor...r/news-story/4ecdcc9e0d6bdd4260f26bc7278c401b

 

[Magus]

This one?

Matthew Nicks steps up to ’senior assistant’ as Ken Hinkley starts fifth season without coaching director
Michelangelo Rucci, Chief Football Writer, The Advertiser
November 5, 2016 12:00am

KEN Hinkley’s coaching panel at Port Adelaide is locked — with no coaching director and Matthew Nicks being promoted to the new role of “senior assistant”. Hinkley will work with three “line coaches” next season — Brendon Lade returning from Richmond to be the Power’s ruck and forwards coach; Nathan Bassett retaining defence for his second year at Alberton and Brownlow Medallist Michael Voss continuing to manage the Power midfield for his third season.

Each zone coach will have a lieutenant — Stuart Cochrane (midfield), Trent Hentschel (forwards) and Jacob Surjan (defence). Chad Cornes remains as the Port Adelaide Magpies (SANFL) coach working in tandem with the Power AFL program.

There will be no other appointment to Hinkley’s panel, with Port Adelaide not chasing former Western Bulldogs assistant coach Brent Montgomery for a return to Alberton, as has been long speculated. Hinkley will start his fifth AFL season as a senior coach with no coaching director, as he had on arrival at Alberton in 2013 with Alan Richardson (now at St Kilda) and, in the past three years, with Shaun Hart.

The responsibilities from that senior portfolio will be taken up by Nicks, who will lead the Power’s analysis of opposition teams, and football chief Chris Davies. This is another significant statement on Nicks, who last year in the 2015 NAB Challenge pre-season took charge of the Power team for two practice games. The former Sydney player steps away from coaching Port Adelaide’s forwards to leave that assignment to Lade. Nicks, regarded as an AFL senior coach in the making, has been at Alberton since 2011 working in the development program (2011-12), as defence coach (2013-15) and as forwards coach in the past season. He will now be Hinkley’s right-hand man and key analyst on opposition teams and game trends. Hinkley’s coaching panel loses two staffers from this year. Hart has taken up a newly created role as the Port Adelaide’s director of academies. Midfield assistant Garry Hocking has left the club after not having his contract renewed....... then talks about Adelaide

https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/spor...r/news-story/4ecdcc9e0d6bdd4260f26bc7278c401b

I don't know if that's the one but if it is, 'opposition analyst' doesn't say to me that Nicks is the genius tactician behind our gameplan.

 

[jac147]

Our kids are crap because right at the time we were at our lowest the AFL decided it would be a great idea to bring in two teams that would gouge the eyes out of the draft, and give teams that lost uncontracted players compensation picks.

We should have ended up with 2 potentially elite players and 4 potentially decent role players from the 2011 and 2012 drafts. Instead we ended up with two potentially elite players - Wines and Wingard.

This threw our list profile out of whack, as well as every other team that was at or near the bottom of the ladder at that point. This is why teams like Hawthorn and Geelong, who were at the top or nearing the peak, could extend their runs for so long. It’s why now you are seeing teams like Melbourne and Richmond doing well - they were bad directly before and after 2010-2012 and so could stock up on kids that improved their list.

We tried to bypass this by trading in players like Polec, Ryder and Dixon with high draft picks in 2014, 2015 and 2016 and targeting Monfries in 2012, White in 2013 and Rockliff and Motlop in 2017 so we could maximise the output of Boak, Gray, Ebert and Westhoff while supporting Wingard and Wines.

For whatever reason, Chad won’t go to the level he’s capable of - the level we’ve seen all too rarely against Adelaide in 2013 and Hawthorn in 2015.

Saying “he’s still one of our best” and everyone else is underperforming regulates him to the role of a support player when he’s supposed to be a star.

He could be LeBron James, but he’s playing like DeShaun Thomas.

If the club wants to build a team of young stars while we still have older stars like Gray and Boak for them to learn from in terms of hard work and dedication, that’s fine.

If Chad Wingard wants to stay and do the same, that’s fine too.

What isn’t fine is the path we have been travelling for the past few years. Patience has now run out all all sides.

I would prefer Chad to stay but if a really, really good trade could be worked out then on ya bike! His petulant attitude must completely disappear from his game if he stays.
Keeping it light, I love it when he wear his old beat up Magpie beanie.

 

[Janus]

But there's an article someone in the universe that says different. But no one can find it.

Tree in the woods blah blah

It wasn't a Rucci article that I was referring to originally. It was this one - a Mark Robinson article:

Desperation created urgency and creativity. For three solid weeks at the end of last season, Hinkley and assistants Michael Voss, Matthew Nicks, Nathan Bassett, Shaun Hart and Chad Cornes and head of football Chris Davies gathered every day to dissect their football.

“It was all right for me to be strong and hard and say, ‘We’re going to stick to what we know and rah-rah- rah’, but sticking to what we know was getting us in trouble,’’ Hinkley said.

“We put time into each area of the game and we had to not be frightened if we were right or wrong. We talked offence, defence, structure ... I didn’t care how long it took us, we needed to get it right.

“I like looking at football a lot but I was going to go further and harder into this to see what we’re not getting right and see what we’re dealing with in understanding the game.’’

*******************

“Some of my stuff that perhaps I wasn’t doing and they wanted me to do, whether that be game day, whether that be not hearing all the information all the time, being locked in a little bit so open up and listen ... and I was happy enough to listen.

“It wasn’t confronting. I think it’s refreshing for you for people to tell you. Nicksy is now a senior assistant and the conversation got to the point, where he said: ‘Do you trust me, do you really trust me?’

“That was never the issue, but that was some part of the feeling because of the pressure we were dealing with. We had all sorts of those conversations.

“Vossy was a good one. I had a live example of what might happen and what might not happen and how you handle it. I still ask him those questions.’’

********************

One result is now Port’s coaching meetings are taped and reviewed which Hinkley described as confronting.

“Bloody oath it is. And it’s not just me, it’s all of us, we’ve got to be prepared to own that space,’’ he said.

“If we are going to better, that’s a conversation you have to be prepared to have. If I’m going to be a better match-day coach I’ve got to be able to have the confrontation about, well, at the moment you probably lose control in the box too much at times.

“I would’ve said I’m like 17 other coaches in the box, but can’t any longer accept that as an excuse. I’m going to do everything I can right through the summer to try to make that change.’’

********************

The results of the review prompted hard questioning of the where the list sat.

Urgently, they needed more young talent, needed more draft picks, so when trade week started, they let all clubs know most of their list was on the table.

“We had to get ourselves into a position to get into the draft strongly. The Hartlett name becomes the story because he’s the name, but it was more than just the Hartlett name,’’ Hinkley said.

******************

The review was completed four months ago and its impact reverberates through the club. It has become the point of reference and continues to be challenged.

“We say we’ve got it right, but we keep asking,” Thomas said.

“Are we sure we’ve got it right? Can we tick off another thing to make sure we’ve got it right this year? We’re prepared to keep going back and to look, and not to believe, because at this time of the year it’s easy to believe, but to question.”

*********************

It is said premiership teams coach themselves and Port was miles from that.

Maybe they made an error four years ago.

Then, Hinkley, Phil Walsh and Allan Richardson were triumvirate in charge of a young, disjointed list.

The club believed those three men had needed to lead the group and its culture. Then Walsh left for Adelaide, Richardson went to St Kilda, and arguably there was a lull in development on field.

“Now, it’s grown up time and they (the players) were looking for it,’’ Thomas said.

Hinkley: “We’ve got great coaches, but it’s not great coaches, it’s making our coaching greater. And that’s education. How to better educate our players, how do they learn best.’’

***********************

Here's another:

MATTHEW Nicks is Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley’s new right-hand man — the senior assistant coach letting Hinkley do what does he does best.

“He’s released to spend more time — quality time — with the players,” says Nicks, who is in his seventh year at Alberton.

He has worked in every assistant coaching role — development coach, defence coach and forwards coach — except managing the midfield.

But, quite importantly, Nicks has not only cleared much of Hinkley’s agenda to work with the players (more so than the assistant coaches) — he also has pushed away the lines that split an AFL team into three divisions during the weekly build-up to a game.

“We’re not forwards, midfield and backs — we’ve become one unit not three,” says Nicks of the major refit of the Port Adelaide football program after last year’s review in reaction to missing AFL finals for two consecutive seasons.

“We’ve not only given Ken more time to connect with his players, we’ve also been about connecting more as a football group.

“In six months, that stronger connection has — regardless of the pressure of results — made sure we never move off our plan. We do know where we are at.

“I say my job is about bringing on that connecting between all the assistant coaches,” adds the 175-game Swan and former West Adelaide draftee.

“And I’ve really enjoyed the role and more responsibility. We’ve developed fantastic trust — and we do know where we are heading as a group.”



Ken might be the one that carries the can if the plan succeeds or fails, but it's a group strategy. And it's been a group strategy since the end of 2016.

 

[badbeats]

The 2017/2018 system was developed by Nicks

Ken might be the one that carries the can if the plan succeeds or fails, but it's a group strategy. And it's been a group strategy since the end of 2016.

So was it developed by Nicks or the coaching group as a whole?

 

[edgie]

I'm just here for the pictures of portly fitness coaches... And I'm disappointed.

Sent from mTalk

 

[Janus]

So was it developed by Nicks or the coaching group as a whole?

There's another article somewhere that says Nicks was the one who developed the strategy but obviously it is in conjunction with the coaching group as a whole. It was most likely in the Friday Footy liftout that never really gets posted online. The fact that I found the article where he says 'Do you trust me?' - which was back at the start of 2017...almost two years ago - should tell you that when I say something, it's not for fun.

When Nicks talks about combining defence, midfield and attack into one 'cohesive unit' - doesn't that sound like team offence/defence to you?

 

[OneGreatClub]

There's another article somewhere that says Nicks was the one who developed the strategy but obviously it is in conjunction with the coaching group as a whole. It was most likely in the Friday Footy liftout that never really gets posted online. The fact that I found the article where he says 'Do you trust me?' - which was back at the start of 2017...almost two years ago - should tell you that when I say something, it's not for fun.

When Nicks talks about combining defence, midfield and attack into one 'cohesive unit' - doesn't that sound like team offence/defence to you?

No wonder they looked confused...’ Hey forwards, you’re backs too. Hey backs, You’re forwards too, and hey mids, above all else you are forwards and backs. Remember fellas, share it around”

 

[Ford Fairlane]

Falloon was a picture of health, the previous bloke who took over after Burgess left us in the middle of the preseason was the moob-endowed gent.

Dan Comerford

 

[El_Scorcho]

For whatever reason, Chad won’t go to the level he’s capable of - the level we’ve seen all too rarely against Adelaide in 2013 and Hawthorn in 2015.

This isn't just targeted at you, there are a few people making the same argument, but here's a list of people who play in the forward and midfield in 2018 who played at anywhere near their best football for the majority of the season:

1. Robbie Gray.

I would say after Gray, Wingard had the most games of football where he played at or near his best out of anyone who plays in the midfield or forward lines.

Westhoff potentially as well, but he plays all over the place and if it's not working, he just moves to defence to work himself into the game anyway.

Right now Tom Jonas has his peak trade value, because he was the general of a very good defence because of how the entire team set up. I'd hate to trade Jonas and I believe it would be a terrible move, but we'd at least be trading him after having spent a season beefing up his trade value. Wingard is the opposite. His trade value is the lowest it's ever been because he's an attacking player playing in the most defence oriented team in the league.

I'd argue Wingards game against Richmond (31d, 5m, 8t, 6i50s, 7cl) was about as good a game as he's played, it just lacked the goals because that wasn't the role he was playing and as a rule, the 2018 side didn't score goals unless they absolutely had to.

 

[sobrave]

I'm just here for the pictures of portly fitness coaches... And I'm disappointed.

Sent from mTalk

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maggie_De_Block

 

[Janus]

This isn't just targeted at you, there are a few people making the same argument, but here's a list of people who play in the forward and midfield in 2018 who played at anywhere near their best football for the majority of the season:

1. Robbie Gray.

I would say after Gray, Wingard had the most games of football where he played at or near his best out of anyone who plays in the midfield or forward lines.

Westhoff potentially as well, but he plays all over the place and if it's not working, he just moves to defence to work himself into the game anyway.

Right now Tom Jonas has his peak trade value, because he was the general of a very good defence because of how the entire team set up. I'd hate to trade Jonas and I believe it would be a terrible move, but we'd at least be trading him after having spent a season beefing up his trade value. Wingard is the opposite. His trade value is the lowest it's ever been because he's an attacking player playing in the most defence oriented team in the league.

I'd argue Wingards game against Richmond (31d, 5m, 8t, 6i50s, 7cl) was about as good a game as he's played, it just lacked the goals because that wasn't the role he was playing and as a rule, the 2018 side didn't score goals unless they absolutely had to.

That’s why I don’t really want to trade him. But it’s really up to him, the same way it was up to Hamish when he was on the trade table.

How committed are you to being the best player you can be?

 

[El_Scorcho]

That’s why I don’t really want to trade him. But it’s really up to him, the same way it was up to Hamish when he was on the trade table.

How committed are you to being the best player you can be?

The difference is Wingard's potential trade value is much, much higher than Hartlett and trading Wingard has a much greater chance of blowing up in our face.

 

[GoPorts]

Work hardery for longery.

Jokes aside, there are factors in play that are contributing to Wingard not applying himself as well as he could be. It's as much up to him as it is to us to try and turn it around. I am under no illusions that he'll be a much better player at another club, but i'm also not under any illusions that there is a fair chance he'll never be that with us.

The triple negative in that last sentence there makes that pretty hard to understand what you are saying

 

[Doctor Feel]

The triple negative in that last sentence there makes that pretty hard to understand what you are saying

It means we should definitely consider recruiting Salma Hayek.

 

[GoPorts]

It means we should definitely consider recruiting Salma Hayek.

Salma Hayek circa 'Desperado'

Although I'd still rock up to see her today

 

[NEGAN]

I have no idea wtf is going on?

I am playing catch up here and I am reading Wingard and Jonas trades ??? And a mystic fitness coach with moobs.


Wtf are we doing?

 

[elee]

No wonder they looked confused...’ Hey forwards, you’re backs too. Hey backs, You’re forwards too, and hey mids, above all else you are forwards and backs. Remember fellas, share it around”

yeah aaaand share the ruck duties too.... all rounders

 

[badbeats]

People talking about Wingard being his best.

Disregarding the teams needs is that as:
70/30% FWD/MID
30/70% MID/FWD
100% MID
100% FWD

Personally the more midfield time he get's the better.

 

[Janus]

Midfield unless he’s getting tagged, at which time he drags them into the forward line and kicks a bag.

 

[badbeats]

* Janus and I agree on something

I'm logging out for a week