A demanding AFL season has had a devastating impact with three marriage breakdowns

Don Pyke flagged concerns about mounting pressure on coaches 18 months ago, but an extraordinary season has had a devastating impact.

Nathan and Tania Buckley confirmed their split last December after 18 years of marriage. Picture: Supplied

Is the third AFL coach to separate from his wife in the past year a pure coincidence or a reflection of the mounting personal toll the job can take on the game’s most public figures?

Growing pressure, expectation and time demands on a senior coach have never been greater than last season when Victorian clubs were forced into hubs for up to four months to keep the season alive.

Away from family and friends and living in a bubble they were without the usual support networks they would have in place but compounding the situation is they too were unable to provide the same support back home.

As a collective, Nathan Buckley, Damien Hardwick and Simon Goodwin represent 16.6 per cent of the senior coaching fraternity, and three out of 18 is nowhere near a majority or even half.

But the news around their marriage breakdowns comes after the most extraordinary of seasons and to a job that already came with its fair share of scrutiny and pressure, the sort of pressure that also forced North Melbourne coach Rhyce Shaw to walk away from his job.

Damien Hardwick split with wife Danielle was revealed amid revelations he is now seeing a club staffer. Picture: AAP

Don Pyke flagged his concerns about the mounting pressure on senior coaches on his way out the door at Adelaide 18 months ago and AFL chief executive Gill McLachlan said those were heard loud and clear.

“What Don was talking to, is it different now to say what it was five years ago? I think what he was explaining, for him part of the decision (to quit) was, he clearly did own where he was with the players and the group and part of the functional responsibilities, but also part of the reason for the decision he made was because of the pressure and stress not just on him but on his family,” McLachlan said at the time.

“That’s what was heard. That is consistent with ... the mental health, and there is a lot in all that, it’s the biggest issue with our players. What you are hearing from Don, and others, is it’s just not the players, it’s the coaches and others. There is a lot of pressure ... yeah, you get paid well and that’s the job and I think that’s fair, but it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist.”

Simon Goodwin is believed to have separated from his wife Maggie three months ago. Picture Dean Martin

Before news of Hardwick’s split from his wife and revelations he was now seeing a club staffer, he announced he would take an extended break after the 2020 season in which the Tigers won their third premiership in four years.

He is now expected back next week but his initial point remains and you’d wonder whether the situation is on the radar of the AFL Coaches’ Association and what else clubs can do to assist the welfare of their leaders.

Only those involved in the marriage can know what toll, if any, the job of senior coaching and a season spent in Queensland took on their personal lives.

But news of Buckley, Hardwick and Goodwin in recent weeks could also simply be just another reminder that these very public figures are still just very normal people who go through the same ups and downs of life as everyone else, and not everything turns out the way it was planned.