Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley says he and his players have no-one to blame but themselves for feeling the heat from an AFL blowtorch.
The 10th-placed Power are one win outside the top eight, their finals hopes in the balance ahead of Saturday’s away game against Essendon.
Hinkley has no doubt he’ll fulfil his coaching contract at Port which expires at the end of the 2021 season but he’s feeling pressure to halt a three-game losing streak.
“We appreciate we haven’t been performing as a football club the way we need to and that is why all that attention comes on us,” Hinkley told reporters on Friday.
“If our performance was better we wouldn’t have this situation that we have now.”
Hinkley dismissed feeling added pressure to keep his job as Port face the prospect of missing the finals for a third time in four seasons.
“No, not at all,” he said.
“Other than I’m feeling the heat that our side is not performing at the level we want it to perform at.”
Hinkley said “there’s never any doubt in my mind” that he would fulfil his contract at Port as he again juggled his side in search of more scoring potency.
Hinkley axed prized recruit Scott Lycett, Dougal Howard and Joel Garner for the Marvel Stadium encounter with the seventh-placed Bombers.
Key forward Charlie Dixon, Todd Marshall and Peter Ladhams were summoned as replacements.
Hinkley said Lycett’s omission was based on a dip in form and a need to reward fellow ruckman Ladhams for sustained excellence in the state league.
“Pete can’t do any more, he has been killing it at Magpies level,” he said.
“Scott’s form as been okay but there comes a time when the replacement has got to get a chance.
“Scott obviously is disappointed and wouldn’t totally agree with our decision but … Pete deserves that chance.”
Hinkley identified stopping Essendon’s swift ball movement as the primary challenge to putting the clamps on the Bombers, who have won seven of their past eight games to charge into premiership reckoning.
Essendon made two changes, recalling Orazio Fantasia and Conor McKenna at the expense of Jayden Laverde and Ben McNiece.
“Everyone is aware of their speed through the middle of the ground, they have got a great group now,” Hinkley said.
“They’re a pretty good package overall, I think everyone would admit that.”