Hinkley and Power Legends Call Out Club Stars After Disappointing Performances

Port Adelaide’s head coach, Ken Hinkley, has voiced his frustrations with his star players after the team’s lacklustre defeat to Essendon on Thursday night.

Although the Power maintained a lead for much of the match, the Bombers capitalised with 17 scoring attempts and dominated the final quarter, securing the victory.

With Hinkley set to leave his role as coach at season’s end, he directed criticism at captain Connor Rozee and other key players for failing to meet expectations.

“The disappointing aspect is that our top performers, the ones we relied on, simply didn’t reach the necessary standards throughout the game,” Hinkley remarked.

“As a collective, our more experienced players were a bit off the mark tonight, and they are well aware of it… We understand that they can’t deliver outstanding performances every week, but we had too many players under par tonight.

“Connor has been exceptional for us this season, and I’m sure he would admit that his performance this evening fell short of what he aimed to contribute, so full credit to Durham.”

Despite a strong finish in the fourth quarter, Rozee accumulated 22 disposals but managed only three score involvements, being closely monitored by Essendon’s Sam Durham.

Another prominent midfielder, Jason Horne-Francis, also faced scrutiny over his performance from club legend Kane Cornes.

The 21-year-old managed a brilliant late goal and racked up 22 touches, yet Cornes pointed out that his body language was concerning.

“I’m starting to wonder about Horne-Francis and what the future holds if he finds himself in a struggling team,” Cornes told SEN.

“His body language is particularly troubling because he is a fiercely competitive player, yet he struggles to handle situations when they’re not going his way.

“He sulked last night, and there’s no other way to put it. Then he lured us back in with a spectacular one-handed take and finish, but he needs to demonstrate better body language consistently, as it impacts the entire group.

“When he’s downbeat, when he gives away free kicks, when he fumbles, or when he drops simple marks, the negative effect of his poor attitude casts a long shadow over his teammates. That’s simply not acceptable.”

The Power’s record now stands at 1-2, coming off a heavy defeat to Collingwood in the opening round and a victory over Richmond in round two.

Hinkley insists the club has significant work ahead of them.

“Our performance isn’t where it needs to be, that’s a fact. We’ve had one solid outing against a younger Richmond side last week… we still need to find our rhythm. We must expedite that process as quickly as possible,” Hinkley concluded.