Ken Hinkley divides opinion with strange moment of mirth in coaches' box against Brisbane
The outgoing Power coach, who will hand the reigns over to Josh Carr at the end of this, his 13th year in charge, has made a career out of wearing his heart on his sleeve.
Hinkley's emotions, both good and bad, have got him into trouble at times — like when he taunted Hawthorn's Jack Ginnivan after the 2024 semi-final — but they are also partly responsible for the love he has largely had from Port fans during his tenure.
Famous pictures of Hinkley celebrating on the boundary line or in the coaches' box have punctuated his career.
But playing with lollies was a new one on Saturday night.
Hinkley put a piece of white confectionary in front of his teeth, feigning as though he had a new set, and stared down the barrel of the coaches' box camera in what was a light-hearted joke.
'Ken Hinkley, he's got seven games left to coach — he hasn't lost his sense of humour,' Corbin Middlemas said during Fox Sports' coverage.
Having a laugh at the rare moment of humour, Campbell Brown said on Sunday Footy Feast that it was good to see the human side of Hinkley.
'You know what, he's always been like this, we just haven't always seen it as the pressure has built,' Brown said.
'We can start to see Kenny enjoying his his time (now).'
Jason Richardson joked: 'In any traumatic state, we've moved through denial, anger — we're now at acceptance and embracement.'
Fans didn't quite see it the same way though, given the context of the game.
'It is unbelievable to think a senior coach in his 13th year of tenure would carry on like this in the midst of an eight-goal run against his team. A team that, of his own admission, is supposed to be contending,' one said.
'Wouldn't be happy as a Port person with this. The bloke has given up,' another added.
'I'd be ropeable with this if I supported Port,' a third said.
Not all the reactions were negative, with fan telling everyone to 'lighten up, he's having a bit of fun'.
Port Adelaide kicked the first three goals of the game, but then went on to have nine of the next 10 kicked against them, including a run of eight in a row.
It was a run that set the Lions up for a comfortable 28-point win, keeping their top-two hopes alive as September approaches.
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