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Essendon have scheduled a press conference this afternoon to address the future of senior coach James Hird. Club president Paul Little and CEO Xavier Campbell at which Hird is expected to announce his resignation. Join The Roar for live updates from 3:15pm AEST.
Reports broke earlier today that Hird was set to announce his resignation via The Age journalist Jake Niall.
More:
>> James Hird is gone, and he shouldn’t be the last
>> James Hird resigns as Essendon coach
>> The coach must always pay the price
The move comes following Essendon’s demoralising 112-point loss to the Adelaide Crows in Round 20 of the 2015 AFL season.
It was Essendon’s fifth consecutive loss and their second loss of 100 points or greater for the year.
Despite surviving immense pressure during the height of the Essendon supplements saga it appears that Hird could not survive the poor form of his own coaching.
The Bombers are currently fifteenth on the ladder with just five wins for the year after making finals last year under Mark ‘Bomber’ Thompson.
The Bombers will announce an interim replacement for Hird at the press conference with former Geelong player Matthew Egan believed to be the front runner.
The Bombers have three experienced senior coaches on staff, former Fremantle coach Mark Harvey, former Adelaide coach Neil Craig and former Melbourne coach Mark Neeld, but it’s believed they will favour the fresh face of assistant Egan.
Hird’s resignation makes Essendon the third club to be looking for a new senior coach ahead of the 2016 season, following the untimely death of Adelaide senior coach Phil Walsh, and Carlton’s decision to sack Mick Malthouse earlier in the year.
Hird’s senior coaching career will finish with a record of 41 wins, 43 losses and a draw from 85 games coaches across the 2011-13 and 2015 seasons.
Essendon qualified for finals twice under his leadership, losing an eliminational final in 2011 to Carlton, and being disqualified from the 2013 finals series as part of the penalties related to the supplements scandal.
Join The Roar for live updates from James Hird’s resignation press conference from 3:15pm AEST.