PORT ADELAIDE coach Ken Hinkley has described his side as “resilient” after its win over Richmond on Saturday evening, and he has challenged it to continue to perform for the remaining six games of the regular season.
Hinkley’s men ran out 21-point winners over the reigning premiers, having given up two leads of more than three goals during the game, and come from a point behind at three quarter time.
Richmond was playing without captain Trent Cotchin but still showed it could compete after repeatedly coming back when Port threatened to run away.
Hinkley said having played three games in nine days, it was another challenge his side had overcome.
“I think they’ve been really resilient this year,” he said in his post-match press conference.
“They’ve been challenged a number of times and we talk about that a lot and tonight was another one of those challenges against a great team, an amazing team in Richmond off a four-day break, didn’t have their captain.
“A lot of credit goes to Richmond but we were able to be dominant in that last quarter and maybe we got a reward for some of the work we put in in the first three quarters.
“You asked me to describe the team – resilient, we’ve been able to play four quarters more often than not.
“We’ve been consistent - we haven’t always been able to say that – but I can sit up here now and say we’ve got a consistent team who play for each other.”
Port could have blown the game apart had it not been for plenty of missed chances, and some questionable umpiring decisions which led to Richmond goals.
Hinkley was proud of the way his side stood up to the challenge and prevailed.
“The good sides of the competition put you to the sword and you’ve got to respond when it’s going against you,” he said.
“We missed some opportunities in front of goal, they maxed out in their front half efforts– you know they kicked 16 or 17 scores from about 22 entries at one stage so they were making the most of it and we just had to stay with it and we did.
“Without doubt the last quarter the pressure was the highlight for me, it wasn’t the opportunities, it was the pressure which was the highlight.
“I said it in the box, ‘gee our boys have been really really hard, and really tough and just haven’t let up.’
“They were playing for each other and that was what I was proud of.”
It was a brilliant spectacle for the sport – high intensity, hard, attacking football that supporters have been craving in this strange season.
“I thought it was a pretty good thing for AFL football as much as anything,” Hinkley agreed.
“Two really aggressive teams going at it pretty hard, with a one-point margin at three quarter time with lots of things you love in the game – tough, hard, attacking, scoring, playing with every second that you’ve got and I thought it was a great advertisement for AFL football in a really tough year.
The numbers said Port was dominant without putting it on the scoreboard.
55 inside 50s to 24 including 19 to two in the last quarter. 41 clearances to 22. 157 contested possessions to 112.
Hinkley said much of the result can be put down to his side playing two ruckmen for the first time this season and the hard work of his on-ball brigade, especially Travis Boak, Ollie Wines and Tom Rockliff.
“I thought they were first class,” Hinkley said.
“Two rucks worked really well for us with (Peter) Ladhams and Scott (Lycett). I thought our midfield group collectively were strong all night and Ollie and Trav, and Rock – whose been out of the side a couple of times, he was great, he’s got great knowledge.
“We got some good clearance numbers with our rucks giving us first look plus we kicked some remarkable goals, we missed some easy ones but outside of that (Pete) looked like a bit more of a presence around the ground, which is where he’ll start to see his growth when he starts marking the ball more consistently.”
It was a big win for the Power who move to nine wins from eleven games and celebrate 150-game milestones for captain Tom Jonas and vice-captain Ollie Wines and the 100th game of ruckman Scott Lycett.
Hinkley said with six games to go, nothing was a given, but his side was well placed to return to finals action.
“We’re eleven games in, we sit a game clear on top of the ladder with the best percentage in the competition,” the Port coach said.
“It takes a lot to earn that and we’ve been able to keep earning it and keep earning it.
“We haven’t played perfect footy all year but that’s why you have a season. You get to see how you go for the whole season.
“We’ve still got six to go and we’ve got to keep going – that’s the challenge to us as a club.”
