Ken Hinkley says every opportunity is now focused around making sure the club performs better in 2023. Image: AFL Photos.

KEN Hinkley has his answer - not that he had much doubt he would coach Port Adelaide in Season 2023, as scripted by his long-standing contract.

Now he and his football department led by Chris Davies are searching for the answers on how to restore Port Adelaide as an AFL premiership contender after a disappointing - and frustrating - fall from the top-four rankings of the past two seasons.

Port Adelaide president David Koch on Thursday evening publicly reaffirmed Hinkley's tenure at Alberton is to enter its second decade, as planned in January last year when Hinkley was handed a two-year contract extension. This is despite repetitive external questions on how Port Adelaide's on-field results - particularly when the team fell out of AFL finals contention - would have the football program and Hinkley judged at board level.

"In my view," said Hinkley on Friday morning, "nothing had changed. We were in clear conversations all the way through - and there was no issue.

"I get how it became a bit of an issue. The reality is, nothing has changed for me. I've (used the week) to prepare for the game (against Essendon) on Sunday.

"There has been plenty of public support from the club, right through the season. Go back to round 12-13 when (chief executive) Matthew Richardson made mention of what was expected of us and me next year. That has been really clear. And it was very clear (on Thursday night with Koch's statement of confirmation)."

11:22

Port Adelaide's annual review of its football program will close after the season-opening Showdown on Saturday week.

"We will reflect on our whole program - and look to make sure it is better next year," Hinkley said.

"That is our job, our responsibility.  

"Once the season is complete, we will reflect on the program and see what we need to do - and how we need to do it. What we need to have or not have will be taken care of later.

"The (review) is for the end of the season, as we do every year. 

"We have under-achieved. There is no doubt that we have under-achieved as a football club this year on our expectations. There needs to be a strong look at what we need to do to give ourselves the best chance to bounce back up, which we expect will happen.

"We review every season - at the end of the season - with a fine-tooth comb and we go through it to make sure we have the best chance to improve. This will be no different.

"We have some evidence (on why Port Adelaide has fallen from a preliminary finalist to a non-finalist). We will go through it closely at the end of the season to make sure that evidence is accurate."

Hinkley today wants immediate on-field actions to mean more than the off-field review.

"Our first step is to play football better this weekend," Hinkley said. "Every opportunity now is around making sure we perform better in 2023 because clearly where we are is not where we want to be. We set out at the start of the year to play finals. We are going to fail in that place so we need to make sure everything we do from today - and every day that we turn up - is to make sure we get better."

Hinkley did not take issue with Koch's remarks on Monday during his regular breakfast radio segment in which the president's demand for better on-field results fuelled the external questions on everyone's future at Alberton. 

"David had great intent to talk about our program and where we are at," Hinkley said. "We all, sometimes, get in front of the (microphone) and find it hard to get the right message out. David's intent was in a good place.

"Expectation of ourselves this year was far above where we are now.   

"I understand the headline. But there was no intent to cause any problem, other than to say we are not happy as a football club with where we sit currently.

"I never had any doubt that I would see out my contract - and I did not need it to be confirmed because I trust the people I work with. They are very honest and upfront - that is the way we work. I had confidence on Monday night (after the radio segment) that I would be coaching the club in 2023."

Hinkley will continue for an 11th consecutive season at Port Adelaide where he has a 124-87 win-loss record in home-and-away football and 5-5 in finals for an overall winning percentage of 58.37. In his 10 seasons at Alberton, Hinkley has taken Port Adelaide to five top-eight finals series with three preliminary finals (2014, 2020 and last season).

Since rising to the AFL in 1997, Port Adelaide has had (excluding interim coaches) just four senior mentors. Hinkley is the second most-experienced in AFL games at with 221, behind 2004 premiership coach Mark Williams (273), and ahead of Matthew Primus (47) and inaugural mentor John Cahill (44).