Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley’s dad speaks of his pride in his Grand Final coach son

NATHAN Buckley’s dad Ray says he couldn’t be prouder of his son’s effort to coach Collingwood into a Grand Final, but which current Pies are his favourite players and why?

NATHAN Buckley’s father has conceded Collingwood’s Grand Final coach was “lucky” to retain his job late last year.

But Ray Buckley could not be happier about his son’s role in the Magpies’ extraordinary 2018 turnaround.

Ray said he feared the worst after the Magpies missed a fourth successive finals series last year, prompting a full-scale review of all levels of the club, including the under pressure and out-of-contract coach.

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Ray Buckley stands with his son Nathan. Proud dad is excited to see his son coach in the Grand Final. Picture: Michael Klein

“If you don’t get success, it is a hard game, and you get judged that way,” Ray Buckley said following Friday night’s preliminary final win over Richmond.

“So he was lucky that he was reappointed, and he has made the most of it since.”

“It could have gone this way, or it could have gone another way. It could have been that he might not have been coaching now.”

Ray said he couldn’t be more proud of the way Nathan and his team have galvanised into a cohesive unit who care and play for each other, going from 13th last season to the premiership playoff within the space of 12 months.

Having played a significant role in helping to shape Nathan’s football journey, Ray admitted the pressure on his son and the club was intense at times, but they have emerged stronger and more united.

“You have got to get the rough with the smooth,” he said.

“(Sticking with the coach) seems to have worked a few times now. They have the momentum and the belief, but they (Grand Finals) are always hard to win.

“It is great to see them having a bit of success. The group has been so supportive to each other and if they can back that up (on Saturday), they are going to be right in it.”

Nathan Buckley takes time out with his family, Dad Ray and Mum Karen.

Nathan Buckley famously never tasted premiership success as a player, though not through a lack of trying. He lost two Grand Finals as a player — both to his former side Brisbane in 2002 and 2003 — and won the Norm Smith Medal as best player in a losing team in the first of those play-offs.

He was an assistant coach to Mick Malthouse at Collingwood in 2010, when the club won its last flag. But if he can win the flag as a senior coach on Saturday, it would add to his incredible array of individual honours from his playing career.

“Footy’s a team game and that (winning a flag) would be the ultimate reward,” Ray Buckley said, stressing that this achievement would rate so highly among his son’s football honours, if they can defeat West Coast.

“They all play for each other. It’s one-in all-in and they have been very good.

“It’s great to see what they have done so far (as a team), even with a bit of a short cast (due to the injuries). They’ve been great, and that’s no disrespect to them. All the players have found something in themselves.”

Ray Buckley is a big fan of Taylor Adams. Picture: AFL Media/Getty Images

Ray said he loved midfielder Taylor Adams’ hardness — “he just keeps cracking in, but there are quite a few of them.”

He said reborn Magpie Chris Mayne had been one of the great stories in Collingwood’s revival. Languishing in the VFL for most of last year on a lucrative salary, he has regained his form and the respect of his teammates to become a key member of the side.

“You have got to give full credit to Mayney,” he said. “It was so tough for him last year and most people wouldn’t have made it through, so that says the world about him.”

“And the big bloody Yank (Mason Cox), he was fantastic.”