Ken Hinkley will be announced as Tasmania’s inaugural AFL coach less than 12 months after being moved on from Port Adelaide.
After a long and thorough process, the Devils landed on the 59-year-old to lead the club into their first season in 2028.
Hinkley, who presented to the club’s chief executive, Brendon Gale, and Tasmania’s board on Sunday, will be officially announced at a press conference in Hobart on Monday morning.
Tasmania’s social media accounts teased the announcement on Sunday evening.
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Hinkley won the role over former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley and ex-Sydney boss John Longmire, who both expressed interest in the job.
Longmire met with the Devils a fortnight ago in what he described as a fact-finding mission, while Buckley was favoured for the job last year when he pulled out of the race to find Melbourne’s coach.
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Hinkley coached Port from 2013 to 2025, instantly taking them to the finals after a dismal five seasons following the club’s humiliating and record-breaking grand final loss in 2007.
Although Hinkley never got to a grand final from three preliminary final appearances, Port were almost always in contention during his time.
He walked away with an excellent winning record of 58.6%, having guided Port to 174 victories from his 297 games in charge.
The club’s off-field situation also improved dramatically as crowds returned to games because they were competitive.
Hinkley was named coach of the year twice (2013 and 2020) but stepped aside when highly rated assistant Josh Carr wanted the Port job.
Playing 132 games for Fitzroy and Geelong between 1987 and 1995, Hinkley spent time as an assistant at Geelong and Gold Coast, as well as a year at St Kilda in 2001, before winning the Port role as a 46-year-old.
After leaving Port at the end of the 2025 season, Hinkley has spent this year in the media working for Fox Footy and SEN.
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