Ken Hinkley says he can already picture the day, 100 years from now, when Tasmanians look back and ask who first coached their club.
“My name’s going to be there forever,” he said. “[That’s] something I’m going to be so proud of.”
Hinkley was unveiled as the inaugural head coach of the Tasmania Football Club on Monday, signing a five-year deal beginning on November 1 and running until the end of 2031.
The 59-year-old described himself simply as a footy coach – a job he has done since 1996 and one he says continues to keep him young.
“When I get an opportunity to coach young people particularly, it’s something that I thrive in and I love and I always have,” he said.
Hinkley arrives after 13 years at Port Adelaide and previously helped launch the Gold Coast Suns, experience that has left him under no illusions about the task ahead.
“It’s going to be a build,” he said. “There’s no doubt about that. It’ll be an absolute build.”
“I know the challenges … they’re going to be there and we’re going to ask everyone in Tasmania to be with us all the way through.”
But Hinkley believes the club’s draft and list concessions could help the Devils become competitive quickly.
“If we get them right, don’t be surprised – we’ll come pretty quick and we’ll come really hard,” he said.
He wants to build a gritty side that is difficult to play against but still gives supporters a reason to fill the stands.
“We’ll be pretty tough to play against,” he said. “We’ll play exciting and energetic football. People will want to come and watch us.”
Hinkley said his pitch to the club centred on three words: character, care and connection.
“That’s what I do. I hope I do [it] really well,” he said. “I think my journey would suggest that’s gone pretty well.”
His immediate priorities are appointing a football manager and head of development, two roles he described as critical to building the program from the ground up.
Early conversations have taken place about potential staff, but Hinkley said nothing had been locked in because he only secured the job on Sunday.
When it comes to recruiting players, he said talent alone would not be enough.
“They have to be the right people,” he said.
“We can aim for the top. We can aim for as big as we can and we won’t not try.
“We won’t put any limits on who we’re going after.”
Hinkley acknowledged about 60% of his Port Adelaide side came from interstate, but said players often fell in love with the state and chose to stay.
“They’ll want to be here and live here and they’ll grow their families here,” he said. “That’s the really beautiful part about it.”
He also sees the role as bigger than football, with the club carrying the responsibility of uniting the state behind one team.
“We’re not north-west, we’re not north, we’re not south, we’re not east. We’re just Tasmania,” he said.
Hinkley pointed to the tens of thousands of founding members and the 15,000 people who attended a VFL game as proof the support was already there.
“That’s passion,” he said.
Asked whether the five-year deal would mark the end of his coaching career, Hinkley said he had no plans to step aside if the Devils were succeeding.
“Not if we’re winning, no. I don’t hand over if we’re winning,” he said.
For now, his focus is on building the club whose history will forever begin with his name.
The Devils are due to play their first AFL game in March 2028.
