Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley admitted he should not have played captain Connor Rozee, six days after a hamstring injury, despite medical advice after the skipper was hurt again.
And Fox Footy greats have debated whether it was the right call in the first place to play the superstar midfielder.
Rozee appeared bothered during the third quarter, spending a lengthy period off the ground and being tested, then coming back on briefly before being subbed out at the final change.
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Speaking post-match, a candid Hinkley took responsibility for the “mistake” of playing his skipper.
“I made a mistake playing Connor Rozee tonight,” Hinkley told reporters on Thursday evening.
“That was clear. It was obvious.
“All the testing that we’d done, all the medical support we could get, all the information I could get was (telling us that) ‘Connor was able to (play)’.
“I’d seen it with my own eyes — he was able to run as fast as he needed to, kick as long as he needed to — but once fatigue set in tonight, it was clear.
“I can try and hide behind it, but I’m not. I’m not a coward when it comes to owning a mistake, and that was what it was.
“(It was) my call.”
Hinkley was adamant Rozee didn’t worsen his ailment by playing on Thursday.
“No worse. It’s no worse, but it’s the same issue, which suggests to me that if he had the week off, he’d be better next week.
“I let Connor down by letting him play. And that would impact anyone.
“He thought he was absolutely right to play, and as I said, if you watched him … he was flat out two days in a row, no problems at all. Kicked the ball from 60 metres, had shots at goal.
“I’d seen all the things you needed to see. (But) I should’ve (considered) history. I should’ve known that was perhaps going to happen, and I set Connor up to fail as a player by the way he had to perform out there.”
He added: “He’ll have another scan, we’ll make sure there’s no extra damage.”
“Because it was very little damage on the scan last time, that’s why it was tricky.”
Responding to Hinkley’s comments, Hawthorn legend Jason Dunstall said it was “absolutely brilliant” from the Power coach for owning the decision.
“He sat there and recognised this is going to be a big issue. He said: ‘Put it on me, we had all the information. I’m in charge and I made the decision. I apologise, I got it wrong, we can’t do much about it. We move on’,” Dunstall said on Fox Footy.
“I love what he did.”
However looking at it from a bigger picture, dual premiership Kangaroo David King was critical of the call to risk such an important player.
King feared Rozee would miss the next few weeks, suggesting he was near certain to sit out next Friday night’s clash against the ladder-leading Cats at GMHBA Stadium.
“There are players you can make mistakes with and players you can’t,” King said.
“It’s a big gamble with Connor Rozee to be taking. There was something there. This guy is marquee, if there’s something there, why would you take the risk?
“He doesn’t play for two or three weeks now, does he? He’s just conceded he’s made a mistake and there’s an issue there, there’s no way he’s playing next Friday.”
Dual All-Australian Leigh Montagna meanwhile believes some onus should be put on Rozee for putting his hand up to play.
“There are a lot of senior players that play throughout the year with issues and niggles you discuss with the coaches and medical staff – what you play through and don’t. Connor sounds like a player who’s never had any soft tissue issues before,” Montagana said.
“So he maybe couldn’t give them the correct information that they needed, he wasn’t sure himself. He would’ve declared he felt right and in the end it was partly his fault as well for saying he was right when he clearly wasn’t.”
Dunstall and King then clashed over whether Hinkley should’ve taken the risk pre-game, with Dunstall arguing all signs pointed to it being the right move.
“Put yourself in Ken Hinkley’s shoes. Rozee trains the house down and says he’s right to go. The medical people tick it off and say he’s right to go. And you’re saying: ‘Not playing him, can’t take the risk’,” Dunstall posed.
“You can’t start jumping at shadows. It’s just as important to win that game. Hindsight is a lovely luxury to have.”
To which King responded: “He’s so important to the aspirations of this football club this year. If there is an issue there, which pre-game (there was).
“Don’t jump at (shadows) and end up in the position you’re in now.”
Montagna agreed with Dunstall, adding: “I would’ve played him. All the information Ken Hinkley had been given from Connor Rozee and the medical staff, you pick him.
“Players play through injury risks all the time.”
Originally published as ‘I’m not a coward’: Power coach admits ‘mistake’ playing injured captain