Port Adelaide star forward Charlie Dixon has thrown his support behind coach Ken Hinkley, pleading with the club to look towards Richmond for a reason why the under-pressure coach should remain at the helm.
Hinkley, who has led the Power for the entirety of his 145-game coaching career, has a clause in his contract that could see him axed at the end of the 2020 season if he fails to lead them to September.
Port Adelaide find themselves in a desperate situation with a final round left in the regular season, needing a win against Fremantle in Adelaide on Sunday, and for other results to also fall in their favour, in order for them to make finals.
No matter the outcome of this season, Dixon implored the club to be patient with Hinkley, citing Richmond's rapid rise after coach Damien Hardwick was within an inch of being sacked prior to their premiership in 2017 as a source of hope.
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"He was the reason I came down to Adelaide, he's the only bloke I knew down here," Dixon said on Fox Sports News' AFL Tonight.
“I love what Kenny has brought to the club and what we get from him. I can’t see him not there in the future.
“I think we’ve come leaps and bounds from where we have been in previous years.
“I don’t want to see him go. I think we’ve got our journey ahead and our path is the right path. I just don’t think it’s the right time to be finding a new coach.
“Richmond did the same a few years ago, they were calling for the coach’s head, but the only people who know what’s going on are the people inside the four walls of our club.”
Club chairman David Koch recently announced Hinkley's position would come under review at the end of the year, as part of a club-wide procedure.
However, respected journalist Caroline Wilson believes dialogue around the club would suggest Hinkley may be lucky to make it to next year should his young side fail to make September.
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Despite the noise around their coach, and the huge weight that comes with Sunday's all-or-nothing clash, Dixon insisted the squad had their eyes firmly set on winning against the Dockers.
"It's been misfortunate where we are at the moment but that's on us," he said.
"There's always going to be heaps of noise in a two-team town.
"You've got members and ex-players and everyone who love to throw their two cents in, but we're pretty confident where we're heading.
"Last week was a big one and we just hope we can get ourselves in the right position if everything goes our way, and go out this Sunday and win this game."
