AFL
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Hinkley: Inside the "tragedy" of pre-season for a coach
By SEN
Ken Hinkley has added his voice to the chorus of experts questioning the length of the AFL off-season amid a spate of long-term injuries.
The lead up to the opening round of 2026 has been nothing short of brutal with Port Adelaide’s Ivan Soldo the latest name to have his entire season rubbed out by a ruptured ACL.
Last month Kane Cornes called for the AFLPA to reduce the amount of time off adding that the influx of injuries is down to a lack of conditioning after a lengthy off-season.
Hinkley is inclined to agree saying that as a coach it is the worst time of the year.
“I saw the news today around Soldo. It’s a tragedy you get these injuries at this time of year," he said while making his co-hosting debut for SEN's Sportsday.
"Footy has a bad way of giving you a whack this time of year.
“You just don’t want to be there at training if I’m being honest, it’s the thing you have to do and the one you least want to because you know the risk.
“January 15 I think it was last year Todd Marshall snapped his Achilles at training and when you look at how our season went, it was almost the start of the end right there because you can’t do without those types of players.
“You need a certain amount of training and preparation time otherwise you don't have them ready for competing. When you've got not time for competing then you're not going to win and if you start the season slow then you are in all sorts."
This week it was confirmed that Max King had suffered another injury set back and would not be fit to start the season for St Kilda.
It's another chapter in a heart breaking story for the 25-year-old who did not play a single game last season due to knee issues.
King has managed just 23 games in the last three years an dis one of the league's most injury-cursed players.
"It's a really sad story Max King," Hinkley continued. "I interviewed them (the brothers) it was the Butters draft the Rozee draft...we were talking to them.
"They're great boys, a great family. Both high quality. We have seen what Ben has been able to do, I'm not saying Max would be better but he may have had more upside. he may have been the better player.
"It's a calf, it's not terrible, but this seems to follow him."
While pre-season setbacks are nothing news, last month Cornes called for changes to how much time players are being given off between seasons suggesting their careers are under threat because of the lack of preparation time.
"It happens every year but seems to be worse this year," Cornes said on SEN Breakfast. "This is absolute carnage. Time is going to run out on a lot of these players.
"There's a number of factors in this; you condition the players now during match play which is different to how it used to be.
"You used to be able to condition players with pure running and then you would transition into match play.
"Players are having so much time off, they have de-conditioned; couple that with the fact they don’t have time to reintegrate with running skills to get up to speed, they are just straight back in and we’re seeing it. It’s brutal.
“Whilst the players association think they are doing the right thing by giving players so much time off, they’re harming the product and harming the players and their careers.
"They’re not ready to be put through what clubs are putting themselves through after such a long break.
"Most people would think ACL injury, bad luck, nothing to do with conditioning or brain-body connection, but there is a factor that it is connected.
"We need to change the way clubs are training the players. It has to change across the industry. It is harming the product and their careers."
