Three clubs - Adelaide, Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs - are seeking candidates for the single most prominent, influential role an individual can have at a club.
Selecting a coach may not be an exact science, but once clubs are able to identify their strengths and weaknesses both on and off the field, they are better able to appoint a coach with the right skills to meet their requirements.
Melbourne seems to require an experienced coach, one who is forceful enough to generate consistent performances from his young playing group, and who at the same time has enough cachet to face external pressures in the short term.
A strong, seasoned coach will buy the club enough time to put its football and administration departments entirely in order.
If reports are correct, Garry Lyon’s wish to lure Alastair Clarkson away from Hawthorn with a five-year, five-million-dollar deal makes perfect sense. It was always going to be tough, but landing a hard-nosed premiership coach at the top of his game would have been a perfect fit.
Rolling out the same offer to Ross Lyon also makes good sense, and Melbourne might have timing on its side here, as its list is currently the most attractive of the three clubs in question.
A coach of Ross Lyon’s calibre would no doubt back himself to have the Demons regularly competing for a top-four spot in the coming years, while the prospect of that happening at St Kilda seems increasingly less likely.
The Adelaide Crows have no financial, marketing or stability issues, so they will simply be looking to appoint the best coach they can find. They will, however, be concerned about the loss of Nathan Bock and Phil Davis to the expansion clubs and the impression it gives that players are happy to leave the club.
Previously, having a South Australian background was almost a pre-requisite for applying for the Adelaide job. Mark Bickley, Scott Burns and Simon Goodwin, recently retired players with outstanding credentials, all seem able to fit the bill.
The Western Bulldogs were prepared to make the bold decision to not renew Rodney Eade’s contract. With the benefit of a very stable board and sound finances - a position they’ve rarely enjoyed in the past - the Bulldogs are able to strategically plan ahead.
Given that a number of experienced players are coming to the end of their careers, a teaching coach who can rapidly develop the next generation of players would appear to be the order of the day.
As a former champion player and assistant coach, Leon Cameron’s credentials are well known at the Whitten Oval. Out of all the footballers I played with, he clearly stood out as the most capable of becoming a senior coach. His natural understanding of the game and ability to communicate it to others is a quality that’s hard to learn.
The benefit of spending the past 12 months working with Alistair Clarkson at Hawthorn will also hold him in good stead. It’s easy to see why the bookies have him as a short-priced favourite for the job.
To my mind, the still unproven practice of succession planning has a lot merit.
Every appointment includes an element of risk, but in Nathan Buckley’s case the last two years of on-the-job training give him every chance of success.
Looking back, it seems that Bucks had been preparing for a senior coaching role throughout his playing career; and given that Collingwood understand him better than any other club, it seems logical to expect that he’ll be the next man for the job.
Which brings us back to Simon Goodwin, who many people regard as the ex-player most suited to the Crows' coaching role.
Given that he only stopped playing 12 months ago, he may not be ready for the Adelaide job this time around. But the Crows might consider implementing a program to develop Goodwin into the best candidate for the job when the time is right. Perhaps they’ve already done this.
Developing future leaders and CEOs with clear succession pathways before them has certainly worked in the corporate world for many years.
All things considered, I wouldn’t be surprised to see Mark Bickley coaching the Adelaide Crows next year, my old teammate Leon Cameron at the Bulldogs, and Ross Lyon taking on the job at Melbourne.
The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or its clubs
