‘Needs to address it’: Warning to Port star as coach lifts lid on ‘intense’ chat
Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley admits he had to remind star Zak Butters to “stay calm” during a heated chat caught on camera in the Power’s 48-point win over the Western Bulldogs on Saturday.
A fired up Butters believed he was being targeted off the ball at Adelaide Oval – and not for the first time this season – before being subbed out of the win.
“Yeah (the chat was) just about a bit of stuff off ball. I’ll let the AFL look at that,” he told Fox Footy at half time.
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Butters was seen engaging in battles with Bulldog Tom Liberatore during what was a “dirty day” for the visitors.
But Brownlow Medallist Gerard Healy and two-time premiership Roo David King called on Butters to curb his emotional responses on field.
“He looks gettable now in terms of if you go after him, you can emotionally take him off his game a fraction,” King warned.
“We don’t know what’s happened behind the play (on Saturday). We’ll do a deeper look over the weekend for sure – we’ll all be going through that vision.
“He’s put it on the map.
“Let’s just say something’s been going on. It’s an issue for him going forward now because he’s put it on the table that ‘yeah I do throw the odd punch, I do engage in things that are outside of just winning the ball’.”
The off-ball incidents soured what had been an outstanding day for Butters after he racked up 14 disposals, three clearances and four score involvements in the opening term alone.
Speaking post-match, Hinkley defended his star who he claimed had been “worn like a glove” in the past month.
“My conversation with Zak was just stay calm, stay in the moment. Control what you can control. Some stuff you can’t control so just move on,” he said of the pair’s heated bench conversation.
“Conversations with Zak are always pretty intense on game day which is what I love about him. Everything’s on the line for him on game day.”
But Healy believes if Butters can’t control his emotions, it could one day cost him dearly.
“He needs to address it. He’s going to get intimidated if he shows he’s going to get sucked in. He’s going to get intimidated each and every time he shows up,” Healy warned.
“He’s been fined three times for wiping flies off people’s chins if we can put it in Mark Ricciuto’s (words).
“Zak Butters is potentially a Brownlow Medal winner and he could one day be in the front and not be able to get it around his neck because he’s lost his cool.
“He’s got to get more discipline into his game and understand it is a discipline issue.
“You’ve got no right to throw one back if somebody gives you a pinch on the bicep. You can’t throw a punch and get yourself suspended.”
It’s not the first time Butters has been targeted this season, with Hawks great Dermott Brereton previously warning the Port star to keep his cool.
“I’m all for blokes flying the flag, but at his size and his capabilities, let someone else do it Zak,” he said last month.
“You keep going for the ball mate. You’re too good to be out of the game.”
The Butters scuffle wasn’t the only flashpoint in the clash with the Western Bulldogs with Mitch Georgiades set to face scrutiny for his off-the-ball incident with Nick Coffield.
Bulldog Aaron Naughton didn’t return to the field after a separate off-the-ball moment, while Liberatore and Jason Horne-Francis were seen going at it several times in the spiteful contest.