Brownlow Medallist Michael Voss confident he would be better the second time around

Port Adelaide assistant coach Michael Voss is not spending any time thinking about a potential return to senior coaching but he’s confident he’d be better if he was given a second chance.

Port Adelaide assistant coach Michael Voss has been identified as a potential target of both Carlton and North Melbourne for a second senior coaching job. Picture: Daniel Kalisz/Getty Images

• McDermott: The only man who can coach the Blues
• Tredrea: My sage advice to players, coaches about to sign
• AFL Daily: All the latest news and views

Former Brisbane champion and coach Michael Voss is convinced he would be a better coach if he had another chance — but is not wasting any time thinking about the prospect.

It is 10 years since Voss, then just 33, took over as coach of the Brisbane Lions, the club he led to three premierships as captain while also collecting individual honours such as the 1996 Brownlow Medal and a swag of five All-Australian jumpers.

He has now been mentioned as an ideal candidate for both North Melbourne and Carlton, which have parted with their senior coaches this season and are in caretaker modes.

Voss hasn’t thought much about it.

His initial response on Tuesday to whether he’d be interested is that he’s not one to deal in hypotheticals and that no approach had been made.

Port coach Ken Hinkley with assistant Michael Voss at the Power’s pre-season camp in Noosa. Picture SARAH REED

Voss is also busy trying to keep Port Adelaide’s finals hopes alive as a senior assistant coach.

But he would consider himself better equipped if he had a second bite at senior coaching.

His first appointment, as a club great but still a very young man, had much to do with his reputation as one of the best players of his generation.

Voss would hope that a second chance would be more about his skill set than his name.

“Of course you think that you are going to be (better a second time around),” Voss said. “I’m pleased that there’s a conversation in the industry right now around experience and the benefits and what that looks like.

“I’m really pleased … I don’t think we’ve had that conversation for a very long time, a proper conversation.

“It seems to be happening right now.

“Clearly I’m going to have a biased view based on where I sit — that’s for other people to discuss and chat about.

“All I get to do is just do my job and hopefully we get the four points this week.

“You get asked this question a fair bit.

“In some ways I frame it a little bit like, you’re a 19-year-old player and at 200 games you’re different.

“You’ve learnt more.

“What are we looking at? Ten years of time has passed from what the time I stepped into (as Lions coach) to now.

“You develop a skill set over time.

“I’ve said this before and I don’t mind saying this again: more my name won my first role.

“I’m hoping that my skill set will win me my second.”

Lions champion Michael Voss leaves the field as Brisbane coach after a loss in Perth.

For all of that, Voss is happy to keep plugging away at the task at hand.

He has his hands full at Port Adelaide and made the point that as much as it was nice to be part of the conversation about second-chance coaches, no approach had been made and there was not much point in spending your time consumed with what-ifs.

“I’ve got to be honest; I haven’t thought a hell of a lot about it in the last few weeks,” Voss said. “I got asked about it three or four weeks ago, I responded in a way (that) my position hasn’t changed.

“I come back initially to look at a head coaching role at some stage. The determining factor is: is that now?

“That position hasn’t changed.

“Right now, you’ve got to appreciate that it’s a public nomination only.

“No process has been followed through on, nothing that I’ve heard of so until that does, for me, it’s about the job that I’ve got and doing the best you possibly can.

“We’ve got a pretty important opponent this week and a really important game.

“Your focus doesn't really shift from that.”