Why Port 'won't accept' Horne-Francis' brain fades

Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley says the club “won’t accept” young star Jason Horne-Francis‘ outbursts during the club’s 14-point loss to the Suns on Sunday.

Horne-Francis didn’t get a touch in the first quarter and managed just nine disposals for the game.

The 21-year-old also gave away four free kicks, headlined by a 50-metre penalty in the second term that gave the Suns a goal courtesy of Sam Flanders.

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Hinkley didn’t hold back in his analysis of the young midfielder’s game, especially after he was moved to the forward line in the second half to attempt to revive him.

“We won’t accept that it is OK,” Hinkley said post match.

“Jason is a young player and he’s learning all the time and he’s got to be better than he was today in some moments, there’s no doubt about that.

“He’s learned a lot, but he still has a lot more to learn and that’s clear when you’ve got a young player who is developing. He’s an aggressive player who seeks out body contact and once the oppo get a look at it, they tend to come after you a little bit more.

“Jason is learning to deal with that, and he has to get better.”

In other bad news for Port, key forward Todd Marshall suffered a horrific hip injury thanks to friendly fire.

Marshall’s teammate, Charlie Dixon, fell on top of him and stretched his leg backwards, in painful scenes.

The forward lay on the turf in agony, before being removed for the rest of the match.

“A man of that size coming over the top of you and stretching you in areas you don’t want to be stretched, it will hurt a lot,” Jimmy Bartel said on Nine’s Footy Furnace on Sunday night.

Hinkley said the the club was awaiting scans to reveal the extent of damage.

“Charlie really landed on top of his leg and really jammed his hip down, which he has had history with over the last couple of years,” Hinkley said.

“We will have to wait and scan that. It looks like he has hurt him a little bit.

“I’ve been around a long time and seen lots of strange things happen on the footy field and that’s another one to add to the collection.”

The Power also lost Lachie Jones to concussion, after Gold Coast’s Alex Davies’ hip collided with the defender’s head early in the match.

Jones was subbed immediately, citing concussion symptoms, meaning he’ll miss at least a week.