Termination of employment is often a drab and depressing subject, unless of course you’re talking about footy coaches.
Few things get footy fans talking than rumours one club is looking for a new head honcho. Last season was rather uneventful in terms of coach sackings, with Guy McKenna, Brenton Sanderson and Brendan McCartney’s departures all coming as post-season shocks.
But on day one this season the dust was blown off the rumour mill, with the media baying for one man’s blood: Michael Malthouse.
An extraordinary interview on radio yesterday morning was enough for the Carlton board to sack the legendary coach, but now that the spotlight’s off him, who’ll be next to feel the heat?
Here are three coaches who should be looking over their shoulders.
1) Damien Hardwick
Some might say Hardwick’s an easy target, while others will be quick to point out that the Tigers have played fantastic football over the last fortnight.
On their recent form, Richmond look set to mount a legitimate challenge on finals. But if the ebbs and flows continue throughout the year and the Tigers miss out on finals – even only slightly – you’d have to think time would be up for ‘Dimma’.
Hardwick, who beat out current Power coach Ken Hinkley for the job, inherited a club in shambles at the end of 2009, but after a second-to-last finish in 2010, steady improvement followed over the next few seasons.
The club went from six, to eight, to ten wins in Hardwick’s first three years, before a breakout 2013 campaign saw them go 15-7 and finish in fifth place.
But so far, that’s been the peak for Richmond under Hardwick.
A shocking capitulation against Carlton – a side who didn’t even qualify properly for the finals – in the elimination final saw them bundled out cheaply.
Last season’s miracle run to the finals was a sight to behold, but they were absolutely torched once again in the first week and shouldn’t have been 3-10 to begin with anyway.
Currently, the Tigers are in eighth position, with stirring wins over Collingwood and Port Adelaide offsetting miserable efforts against Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs earlier in the season.
Hardwick is contracted until the end of 2016, but it’d be very hard to see him continuing in the role if their season goes the wrong way from here.
2) Brad Scott
Did you know that Brad Scott is the second longest-tenured coach in the AFL?
Okay, he put pen to paper eight days before Hardwick did back in the 2009-10 offseason, but in any case Scott has been at North Melbourne longer than John Longmire, Ross Lyon and his brother Chris have been at their clubs.
Unfortunately for the younger Scott twin, he doesn’t have a whole lot to show for it.
The club has yo-yoed between scraping into the finals and just missing out over his five-plus-year career. Two straight ninth-place finishes to start his tenure were enough to earn him an extension, and he rewarded North’s faith with an eighth-place finish in 2012.
The club was smacked to the tune of 96 points in the elimination final, and a disappointing 2013 campaign saw them finish 10th.
Last season’s thrilling finals campaign outshone what was a solid, but unspectacular regular season, and their fairy-tale came to an abrupt halt after a 71-point shellacking at the hands of the Sydney Swans.
So far, 2015 has not been kind.
North are one of six teams on 4-4 at present, but their percentage is by far the worst of the lot. Adelaide, Port Adelaide, Hawthorn and Fremantle are all clubs the Kangaroos knocked off last season, but with the exception of Port, the Roos have been smacked in this season’s encounters.
With games against Collingwood, West Coast, Sydney and GWS upcoming, the Kangaroos could legitimately find themselves 4-8 heading into the bye.
Like Hardwick, Scott is contracted until 2016, and James Brayshaw still seems happy with the path the club is taking, but should North Melbourne continue to go backwards this season, one must wonder whether they’ll keep him for a seventh season.
3) James Hird
James Hird has had a drastically different coaching career to many of his counterparts. There’s a debate in itself to be had on whether Hird should have been allowed to return after his season-long suspension, but ASADA drama aside, the Bombers have continued to splutter under the guidance of their golden boy.
Replacing the woefully unpopular Matthew Knights, Hird’s debut season was a rather topsy-turvy affair that ended in a ‘you-shouldn’t-have-bothered’-style Elimination Final loss.
In 2012 the club fell to 11th after a season of two halves. A scintillating 8-1 start to the season counted for naught after a seven-game losing streak to end the season knocked them out of the running.
In 2013 the club was of course on track for a seventh-place finish, before the ASADA scandal saw them disqualified, and while the club took a small step backwards last year (14 wins down to 12), Hird had no involvement with the club at the time.
It’s very clear now that Essendon does not intend to sack Hird over the supplements scandal that’s engulfed the club. It’s certainly admirable that the club has chosen to judge their coach on results and results alone, but that’s also why 2015 is a critical year for the Bombers.
Essendon are also currently in the 4-4 logjam, with their percentage limiting them to ninth. Like North Melbourne though, their upcoming matches against Richmond, Geelong, West Coast (in Perth) and Hawthorn could have them anywhere from 8-4 to 4-8, making finals a near impossibility.
The board and fans have a lot of faith in Hird, and being forced to miss a year with his whole playing list will no doubt work in his favour should his performance be reviewed.
But should Essendon miss out on September by a long way, Matthew Knights knows how quickly the Dons board can change their minds.
Brisbane coach Chris Fagan has defended the AFL Tribunal's controversial decision to overturn star forward Charlie Cameron's one-match suspension for a dangerous tackle, as…
Chris Fagan took issue with repeat questions about the Lions' Tribunal defence of Charlie Cameron, which saw the star forward controversially reprieved.
"It's amazing when you actually play Bailey Dale."
There’s a slight disconnect between the data, the record and the eye test for the Brisbane Lions to start season 2024. This week, Champion…
"One of the great downhill skiers, Bradley!"
Chief certainly gave David King the details he wanted!
