The seeds of discontent at Essendon were sewn as long ago as the sacking of Kevin Sheedy.
While I don’t want to revisit that issue, it showed that the Essendon Football Club has a penchant for drama in its business practices, and they have repeated that method of dismissal again in the case of James Hird.
Hird came out of the Michael Voss mould. Both won the Brownlow Medal the same year, both coached their team where they were star players, and both were revered by their fans.
But star players don’t always make successful coaches, and both fell on their swords after poor team performances.
The problem with Brisbane is that they replaced Voss with a player of the same mould and era in Justin Leppitsch. Let’s hope Essendon avoid that pitfall.
But is it Hird’s fault that Essendon finds itself toward the bottom end of the AFL ladder? It’s difficult to imagine that any coach could have navigated through the drugs saga any better than Hird. The supplements case was ultimately Hird’s downfall, but it is difficult to believe he was the only one to blame.
Now the coach’s position is available at Essendon. Mark Thompson seems to be the obvious choice to take over – he has a proven track record of success, he knows the club, he is a genuine icon of the club, and the fans love him.
Unfortunately, Essendon has burned its bridges with Thompson. If they are going to get his services, it will probably be with a turnover of the faceless men that run the club. They’re a bob a dozen. Great coaches are harder to find.
Only then will this once great club move on.
Who’s in your ultimate team? Pick the best team and compete with other fans for daily prizes on Draftstars. For the best odds on the game try out Aussie bookmaker PlayUp. Think. Is this a bet you really want to place? Set a deposit limit.
Former great Jimmy Bartel is 'incredibly uncomfortable' at the prospect of Tarryn Thomas being given a second chance at an AFL career, as the…
Last, year in the second showdown, Adelaide destroyed Port by 47 points with a staggering 20 marks inside 50 with Tex Walker the main star.
Draper claimed on the '200 Plus' podcast that Bulldogs players could start requesting trades if Beveridge remained as coach, with Tom Morris reporting that…
There’s no disputing that Cam Guthrie will be important against Melbourne, given Patrick Dangerfield is set to miss due to injury.
He and Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell do not like having a player to sub on and would rather have an extra player available on…
Collingwood led by a point with minutes to go, Kyle Langford had the chance to be the hero with a set shot, however, he missed, and we saw the first draw of the season.
