Danielle Hardwick reveals ‘serious grief’ after marriage breakdown with Richmond coach Damien Hardwick

The former wife of Richmond coach Damien Hardwick has opened up on their marriage breakdown and said she had to remain dignified during the time of “trauma”.

Damien Hardwick, coach of the Tigers, and Danielle Hardwick at the 2017 Brownlow Medal.

Danielle Hardwick has broken her silence on her shock split from her husband, Richmond coach, Damien Hardwick, saying she is still grieving the end of the relationship.

However, she said she had to remain dignified during the time of “trauma.”

“I am Ms Hardwick now, I am not Mrs Hardwick anymore,” she told Libbi Gorr on ABC Melbourne radio on Saturday.

The Hardwicks marriage ended last year with Tiger leader Damien going public with his new love, Richmond staffer Alexandra Crow in January. The couple recently bought a $2.3 million Elwood home together.

“Last year feels like a lifetime ago,” Danielle said.

“I am doing my best to remain dignified, so how I am feeling is still a lot of mixed emotions for sure.

“There has been a serious grief process for myself and my gorgeous adult children and the grief is real.

“I guess when you plan a life with your best friend, your partner who you have spent your whole adult life with, there is a definite loss when that is not there anymore, so I am on my way to being well OK, for sure.”

The former couple at the 2017 Brownlow.

Damien and Danielle Hardwick in 2012.

She said she was “100 per cent still grieving the loss of what we had as a family and as a companion.”

Danielle described football as a “selfish” environment and said she had tried to be dignified and respectful throughout the split with Damien.

“It is an old school environment, there is not really any way around it,” she said.

“Everyone is trying to evolve and that is wonderful, but it is male dominated and the life of a footballer and the life of a coach, for want of a better word, can become a very selfish existence, because it is a demanding role and you are watching over the welfare of many, many young men so it does feel very important.

“There has certainly been every raw emotion that comes with this situation but we all have a choice about how we will respond to these and I wanted to respond with dignity and respect my children and my family.

“It is not a great idea to have full blown emotional reactions in that situation, there is nothing good to come of that.

Richmond Coach Damien Hardwick with new love Alexandra Crow. Picture: Herald Sun

“So, again, I guess remaining true to yourself and that comes to the forefront in your darkest times. When you are incurring trauma you really find out what you are about.”

Danielle said she was keeping the surname Hardwick.

“It felt a bit of a negative connotation for me over the last part but ultimately it’s my identity and it has been my whole adult life, so I tried to turn what felt like a negative into a positive,” she said.

“I am Ms Hardwick now, I am not Mrs Hardwick anymore and it is a family name so we are going to continue to embrace it.”

And she confirmed she was looking for love again.

“I am searching and I am from Sydney originally so you never know I might be swayed back that way,” she said.

“Yes, I am, it is official, I am a free agent, sure, let’s run with that.”

Danielle has launched an art business named Ms Hardwick + Co.