Ken Hinkley has been here before.
But he's also going where no other Port Adelaide coach has.
Hinkley will break Mark Williams' record as Port's longest-serving AFL coach in Friday night's preliminary final against Sydney.
The knockout final is Hinkley's 274th game in 12 seasons at the Power helm.
"I will reflect at some point later on in life and go 'you know what, it's just part of my journey'," he told reporters on Wednesday.
"And I'm really pleased to have been part of the Port Adelaide Football Club for a long period of time.
"The footy club has been amazing to me and I can't thank them enough.
"Reality is, we - the team and everyone involved - have got a job to do this Friday night that is more important than anything else."
Hinkley holds the unwanted record as the VFL/AFL coach with most games coached without reaching a grand final.
Three times he has tasted the bitter disappointment of coaching Port in preliminary final losses - in 2014, 2020 and 2021.
"A little bit of luck sometimes is what you do need," Hinkley said.
"In a couple of those games we were really, really close.
"The reality is we know that you've got to play four full quarters in prelim finals.
"I have got quite a history in the game and been around a lot of times at this time of the year.
"You just know, prelim final games, more often than not, are just real tight, tough games of football that go right to the wire."
Asked what his chief lessons were from coaching in previous preliminary finals, Hinkley said small moments become massive moments.
"It's down to small moments - it's down to moments and they're really big moments and they'll be amplified, win or lose," he said.
Hinkley also played in three winning preliminary finals at Geelong - in 1992, 1994 and 1995. All were followed by grand final defeats.
But the 57-year-old was adamant his past experiences left him better-placed as a coach for Friday night.
"Everyone gets better with time and experience," he said.
"I think that's just a matter of fact.
"I've always been told that: that you are a better coach every game because you've learned something along the way.
"And if you haven't, you probably shouldn't still be doing what you do."
HINKLEY'S PRELIMINARY FINAL COACHING RECORD
* 2014: Hawthorn 15.7 (97) bt Port 13.16 (94) at the MCG
* 2020: Richmond 6.10 (46) bt Port 6.4 (40) at Adelaide Oval
* 2021: Western Bulldogs 17.14 (116) bt Port 6.9 (45) at Adelaide Oval
HINKLEY'S PRELIMINARY FINAL PLAYING RECORD
* 1992: Geelong 22.17 (149) bt Footscray 12.13 (85) at the MCG
* 1994: Geelong 16.13 (109) bt North Melbourne 14.19 (103) at the MCG
* 1995: Geelong 20.9 (129) bt Richmond 6.4 (40) at Waverley Park
