McKay poised to make his comeback with Carlton’s main team
Andrew Wu
Carlton forward Harry McKay is expected to fly to Adelaide and make his return to the Blues team for their Gather Round clash with West Coast.
A reliable informant privy to this information, requesting confidentiality, has disclosed that the Blues intend for McKay to join the squad on Thursday and will include him in the 23-player roster for Saturday's match at Adelaide Oval scheduled in the afternoon.
It will mark the return of the 2021 Coleman Medallist to senior football following their personal leave taken after the Blues' unexpected defeat against Richmond in Round One.
McKay made his return to play last week but didn’t have sufficient time to get match-ready for the clash with Collingwood on Thursday evening. Consequently, he took part in a VFL match just two days after, accumulating adequate playing time to ensure he’s fit for this weekend’s encounter.
If McKay joins the lineup, it will mark the first occasion where the Blues have fielded both McKay and Charlie Curnow together since round 22 of the previous year.
The Blues have underperformed during the initial part of this season, with losses in each of their first four matches leaving them stranded near the league's basement. Prior to the start of the round one fixtures, CEO Brian Cook had confidently expressed hopes for his team to secure a spot within the top four.
Soldiers Sam Docherty, Nick Haynes, and Mitch McGovern face potential removal from the team following comments made by coach Michael Voss, who criticized the standards and resilience of multiple Blues players after their defeat against the Magpies.
The Blues have already announced that rookie Matt Carroll, who grew up as a devoted Carlton supporter, will be making his AFL debut this week. Matt Cottrell finished training on Wednesday and, unless something goes wrong at the last minute, he is expected to come back into the 23-player squad.
AFL coaches feel 'marginalized,' cautions Brad Scott.
Brad Scott, the Essendon coach, has delivered a stark message about the direction of AFL coaching, stating that present-day players do not view it as an attractive option for their careers after they retire from playing.
With fervent appeal, Scott implored the AFL to hear out the coaches instead of dismissing their concerns as "rubbish."
Scott, who previously served as the AFL’s football executive, says he has never witnessed the coaching community so "disenchanted."
Following his retirement in 2006, Scott promptly took up a role as an assistant coach at Collingwood. He then held the head coaching position at North Melbourne for ten years starting from 2010.
The two-time Brisbane Lions premier champion thinks Essendon is being heard out by the AFL, however, he feels this isn’t a shared occurrence.
"In my experience in football, I've never witnessed a coaching staff more frustrated with numerous issues," Scott stated on Wednesday.
That has nothing to do with umpiring; it’s also unrelated to the relationship between the AFL.
It’s more about how coaches are viewed within the AFL.
I've never come across a coaching group that feels more disillusioned with their overall treatment.
At the beginning of the COVID-19 lockdowns that led to the suspension and subsequent reduction of the 2020 season, the AFL cut down on the soft cap for football personnel.
However, almost four years after the final COVID-19 lockdown ended, the soft cap remains far below pre-pandemic levels.
In the years 2025 to 2027, the AFL raised the soft-cap limit from $7.275 million to $7.675 million.
"While the sport is thriving and in excellent condition, the AFL has made it clear where their priorities lie – and unfortunately, supporting coaching and football departments does not rank highly on that list," Scott stated.
He believes that the AFL will struggle to retain or bring in new coaches unless this problem is tackled immediately.
“Not only will we lose them, but we simply won’t acquire them from the outset,” Scott stated.
Speak with the AFL Players' Association regarding career paths for players transitioning into coaching roles, and you'll get clear feedback—they aren't interested in pursuing this path.
What the coaches are doing is not what they aspire to do.
They recognize the advantages for their careers in coaching as opposed to the obstacles it presents, and they're making choices accordingly by opting out.
For the first time in my memory within football, this is occurring, and although it has been discussed, the AFL dismisses it as mere nonsense.
“It’s occurring now, and this will keep continuing.”
Craig McRae, the Collingwood premiership coach, concurred with Scott.
"The soft cap has hit its limit concerning our personnel," McRae stated.
And it's not only the coaches; it's also our support team.
And at this moment, there are many noisy voices. There’s a lot of shouting, with people asking, 'What’s happening?'
There are many employees putting in long hours, and they deserve recognition for their efforts.
The AFL CEO Andrew Dillon stood by the league's strategy.
"There have been significant rises in the soft cap over the past few years, following COVID-19, returning to the 2019 figures," Dillon stated in Adelaide.
Ultimately, it comes down to each club deciding how they allocate the soft cap between their head coach, assistant coaches, high-performance staff, list managers, and operational roles.
Scott’s request comes after his twin brother, Geelong coach Chris, criticized the AFL on Tuesday for "selectively choosing" when clarifying umpiring calls.
Recently, Western Bulldogs' coach Luke Beveridge criticized the AFL for causing confusion regarding tackles.
AAP
"I see no reason to talk to them": Hinkley's stance on the Hawks rivalry
Ken Hinkley is preparing Port Adelaide for an intensified rivalry in the eagerly awaited Gather Round grudge match against Hawthorn this Sunday.
The Power coach has played a crucial part in the preparations following his significant involvement in the contentious aftermath of last season’s semi-final match.
However, despite embracing the increasing competition as beneficial for the sport, the 58-year-old remains committed to steering 1-3 Port’s season back onto course.
"We need to assess our current stance, and what that entails is doing absolutely everything possible to secure victory in this football match," Hinkley stated on Wednesday.
“That’s where we’ll spend our time, and it just so happens that Hawthorn are our opponent and it’s Gather Round.
It’s quite a significant buildup, which we greatly appreciate, but the truth is it impacts us more because our season needs to return to a stronger form.
The team defeated Hawthorn by only one point in Round 11 last year and followed that up with a three-point victory during the semifinal.
Following the decisive match, the Power received a $20,000 fine from the AFL. For Hinkley giving verbal jibes to the Hawthorn team.
Hinkley, known for his provocative comments leading up to the rematch at Adelaide Oval on Sunday, has not communicated with anyone from the Hawks since the incident.
"I see no reason to talk with them, and I'm certain they weren't truly eager to converse with me," Hinkley stated.
Basically, my role is to contribute as much as possible to Port Adelaide's success, and that's where I focus all my efforts.
Frankly, I stated my thoughts at the conclusion of last year's match.
Feelings were running high; I felt let down by this, something I've expressed before and for which I have offered public apologies.
I believe it's time for me to progress, and I really need to concentrate on our performance this week.
The Hawthorn players certainly haven't lost touch with those memories. the manner in which Hinkley singled out young forward Jack Ginnivan after the semi-final.
A key member of the Hawks' famed "rascal pack," Ginnivan mentioned this week that he has a special "airplane" goal celebration lined up should he score in front of the supporters at Adelaide Oval.
Hinkley anticipates a highly emotional Hawthorn team and has advised his players to stay alert right from the start of the game.
"When you finally fall short in the last game of the season by just a narrow gap, it definitely leaves a bitter taste," he stated.
The truth is, for us, we anticipate that it will be heading our direction.
“However, every squad that has faced them has experienced their pressure, and we won’t deviate from that.”
We anticipate it heading our direction and are eager for the challenge.
Hinkley anticipates that Port Adelaide veteran Travis Boak will come back following his suspension for missing last week's match against St Kilda.
The Power are considering several alterations for Sunday, as All-Australian player Darcy Byrne-Jones is out due to suspension.
AAP
McRae adopts patient approach with agitated De Goey and sidelined Houston
Roy Ward
Collingwood coach Craig McRae is taking a patient approach with Jordan De Goey’s fitness and refraining from pressuring Dan Houston not to push players too hard.
Houston is this round beginning his second suspension in four matches for collision-based incidents and will miss the clash with 2024 grand finalists Sydney and Brisbane while serving a two-game ban.
Houston skipped last year’s finals with Port Adelaide and the opening round match against Collingwood. owing to a suspension of five matches for an awkwardly handled collision.
Meanwhile, De Goey is annoyed about being sidelined once more after picking up an injured ankle post-match against Carlton. Despite this, he'll accompany the squad to work on recovering from his injury alongside the support staff.
McRae was queried about whether Houston needed to alter his gameplay, but he dismissed the question with a shrug.
"The incident remains as it is. While some might argue he needs to make changes, I'm uncertain about that," McRae stated on Wednesday.
You'll observe these situations, but losing your key players isn't enjoyable for a coach or the squad.
I see this as a chance for improvement and a way for him to rejuvenate, along with giving others the opportunity to step in and fulfill their respective roles.
McRae isn't willing to play De Goey due to him dealing with several injury issues towards the end of last season. He commended the premiership midfielder for his offseason efforts aimed at enhancing his strength and conditioning.
"It's relatively minor; he has an issue with his ankle. However, we've taken heed of what happened last year, so we won’t be putting Jordy out there. One problem could lead to another, and before we know it, we’ll find ourselves scrambling," McRae stated.
So we made the decision earlier in the week to go ahead with that call and hopefully have him ready for Brisbane.
He showed no symptoms of this severity post-game. There were some issues before the match, so we opted to take care of him. Later, he experienced some discomfort, leading us to decide to adopt a longer-term approach.
McRae wishes for De Goey to come back for Collingwood’s match against the Lions, yet he won’t hurry his return.
"We are optimistic that Brisbane is the chosen one, but uncertainty remains," McRae stated.
That remains the plan; we’ll escort him to Adelaide and then bring him along to Brisbane as well, ensuring our physio and high-performance staff remain close to him throughout.
I recently had a productive conversation with him during the week, and he seemed quite irritated. We've seen progress followed by setbacks with him, but this is his fifth attempt, so we still have ample time.
He has put in an enormous amount of effort to reach this point, and his physical condition is notably different from what it was last year.
Australian defender Brayden Maynard is catching the attention of rival teams, but McRae emphasized his affection for Maynard and expressed his desire for him to stay with the Magpies.
"I haven't been keeping up with anything lately and I don't do a lot of viewing either, so my connection to it all is primarily seeing Brayden put in an outstanding performance for our team," McRae stated.
He's greatly cherished among us and appears highly invigorated both for our team and for his personal performance.
We are extremely eager to retain him, and I express my feelings of love and appreciation for him every day. I will allow others to handle list management, and I'll let him manage his own contract. However, I ensure that he knows just how valued and cherished he is.
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