Buckley declines to join Essendon’s coach selection process; ‘Wizard’ will miss again as Hawks face Blues

Buckley will not be a candidate for Essendon coaching job

Peter Ryan
Nathan Buckley has declined an offer from the Bombers to be part of their process to select a new coach as CEO Tim Roberts contacts the management of potential candidates for the vacant job.

The Geelong assistant and former Magpies coach is deep into the selection process to become the first coach of the Tasmania Devils, having caught up with incoming club’s selection panel last week.

The 53-year-old wants to focus on his roles at the Cats and with Fox Footy while going through the Devils’ process without stretching himself too thin.

Competition sources, who did not want to speak publicly, said Buckley was understood to be very respectful in declining the opportunity to have a coffee catch-up with the Bombers when it arose last week. Essendon are looking for a coach to replace Brad Scott, who was sacked in May.

Buckley had a 54.13 per cent winning record during his nine and a half seasons at the club and took them into the 2018 grand final and the 2012 and 2019 preliminary finals.

He is one of three candidates for the Devils coaching job alongside experienced duo Ken Hinkley and John Longmire.

Buckley earned praise from Geelong’s dual premiership coach Chris Scott for his willingness to return to a club as an assistant before attempting to leap back into senior coaching.

The Bombers are beginning the process of reaching out to the management of potential candidates to determine whether they want to have a coffee with members of Essendon’s coaching selection panel.

James Hird is a definite candidate, while interim coach Dean Solomon remains uncertain whether he will pursue the job. James Kelly, Corey Enright and Hayden Skipworth are also among the list of potential applicants the club is set to contact.

Carlton are also searching for a coach to replace Michael Voss. Interim coach Josh Fraser has won seven consecutive matches since taking on the job in May.

No ‘Wizard’ as Hawks take on Blues

AAP
Livewire forward Nick Watson is out of Hawthorn’s big clash with Carlton as Conor Nash continues to battle a neck problem that could end his season.

While defenders Karl Amon and Jarman Impey could return from injury, the Hawks are being conservative with Watson and have ruled the star out for another week.

Watson missed last weekend’s bad loss to Melbourne with a minor hamstring injury, but coach Sam Mitchell had been optimistic that he would return to play the Blues.

“On Tuesday he ran 88 per cent of his top speed, which is still faster than most of us,” Mitchell said before Thursday morning training. “But just from a confidence point of view, we don’t feel like it’s worth the risk with him – so he’ll miss one more and he’ll be available for next week.”

Nash has not played since round 10 because of a disc-related injury in his neck, affecting strength and power down one of his arms.

“It’s pretty complicated … it’s quite unusual, so we’ve had to go to some experts – he went to Sydney through the week and got some further treatment,” Mitchell said.

“Now, he definitely won’t play for a month … but we have no timeline, so realistically he could miss the rest of this season. He’s very frustrated.”

Asked if Nash would recover from this injury, Mitchell was adamant that it is “when, not if”. “The worst-case scenario is he misses the rest of this season.”

Defender Josh Battle is recovering from having his appendix removed last week and also will remain sidelined. “The boys are all saying he has man flu and he should be fine. But unfortunately, he won’t be available either,” Mitchell said.

Impey (hamstring), Amon (knee), Max Beattie (ankle), James Blanck (hamstring) and Finn Maginness had fitness tests at Thursday training, ahead of the team being named in the evening.

The Hawks fell 96 points behind against the Demons last weekend, before restricting the damage to 35.

Mitchell said effort, not missing players, was the issue. He also noted the team showed character by rallying late. “When you give behaviours like that, you get performances like that,” he said. “I think of it as an outlier from an effort point of view. I don’t think Hawthorn fans go to games and don’t see effort from us.”

Carlton have won seven straight under interim coach Josh Fraser and Mitchell is eager to burst their bubble.

“We’ve consistently spoken about making sure that we’re a side that can compete consistently and we weren’t able to do it. So we’ll right that wrong this week,” he said. “They’re obviously in great form and Saturday night at the MCG, what better way to try and bring them back down.”

‘If it’s not a challenge, it’s not worth it’: Solomon

AAP
Yet to put his hand up for the full-time job, Dean Solomon insists he has “loved every moment” of his stint as interim Essendon coach.

Solomon, a key member of the Bombers’ last premiership in 2000, is remaining positive through one of the club’s most barren eras.

Essendon (1-15) have lost 28 of their last 29 games across more than 12 months, with Solomon yet to win in five starts since taking over as coach when Brad Scott was sacked in May.

Solomon says he is yet to talk to Bombers president Andrew Welsh about applying to stay on as coach beyond this season.

His chances of securing the permanent job are dwindling though with every heavy defeat, the latest being a 67-point smashing by St Kilda last Sunday.

A passionate Bomber, Solomon has already declared he will stay at the club even if he doesn’t become the senior coach.

“It’s a tough challenge, but it’s the second time I’ve fulfilled the interim coaching role,” said Solomon, who was interim Gold Coast coach in 2017 after Rodney Eade was sacked.

“If it’s not a challenge, it’s not worth it. I’ve always thought that.

“I’ve actually loved every moment of this, and this is where people get to work on trying to find solutions and look to the future.

“It’s about what can we do and who wants to come along for the ride. I’ve actually really enjoyed it.

“For our members and supporters, we understand that the weekends haven’t looked great. But just being sure that we were doing everything we can on the inside to ensure that medium to long term we will be in good health.”

Essendon sit last and appear headed for their first wooden spoon since 2016 ahead of a daunting trip to the Gabba to face the Brisbane Lions, the reigning premiers.

The Lions put them to the sword with a 64-point win at Marvel Stadium in round eight, but Solomon is taking heart from Essendon’s last match in Brisbane.

Last year, the Bombers pushed the Lions to 18 points at the Gabba when the visitors were decimated by injuries.

“We get to go on the road against the best in the comp and compare ourselves,” Solomon said. “Last year we went up there, a very similar situation, undermanned, and did quite well.”

Hird, who coached Essendon during the supplements saga and quit back in 2015, is certain to be interviewed by the Bombers’ coaching panel.

Untried assistants Hayden Skipworth (Collingwood), James Kelly (Geelong), Corey Enright (St Kilda) and Jaymie Graham (Fremantle) will also likely go through the process.

Sydney premiership coach John Longmire, who exited the Swans at the end of 2024, has been coming around to the possibility of taking on the giant rebuild.

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