'I'm contracted': Ken Hinkley insists he will remain Port Adelaide coach despite semi-final outcome

Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley is confident he will be the one to lead the Power again next season no matter the result of his side's semi final against the Hawks.

The Power have lost three do-or-die finals at Adelaide Oval in the last four years, while a loss to the Hawks would also mark the second season in a row where the club has exited the finals in straight sets.

Hinkley is contracted to Port until the end of next season but speculation has swirled that another finals submission could spell the end of his 12-year tenure with the club.

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Speaking to media at Alberton Oval ahead of the Power's captain's run, Hinkley declared that he and the club had not considered the fallout of a defeat with the team solely focused on winning.

"That's not stuff we spend time on because we know exactly what we're doing internally," he said.

"[With] the direction that we're going and what we're trying to achieve, we don't need to get distracted by anything other than this week's performance and let everything else happen from there."

Asked whether the club's board have set a "pass mark" for his and the team's performance this season, Hinkley gave a defiant response.

"I'm not going to be a smart arse here in any way, shape or form but I'm contracted, that's what the board have told me all the way through," he said with a smirk.

"They have shown me great support the entire journey [and] I trust that will always be the same."

Port Adelaide's 84-point qualifying-final loss to Geelong last Thursday saw alarm bells ring.

The Cats stormed home — holding the hosts to just one goal after half time as they ran away 20. 18 (138) to 7.12 (54) winners.

With his side outperformed and outworked, Hinkley admitted that the team would be better prepared come Friday night.

"[The] biggest reflection on [last week's game] is that you've just got to be ready to go right from the very start against every team," he said.

"And if you don't have a contest level that's at a required level, you're going to get yourself in trouble.

"[There's] something about our club that we don't like to give up. We've always been that way — and we're going to continue to be that way."

The Power will meet the Hawks at 7:40pm AEST on Friday night. The winner will then play the Swans in the first preliminary final the following week.

Coaching Port Adelaide for the 273rd time on Friday, Hinkley will equal Mark Williams' record as the Power's longest-serving coach.