‘Would be perfect’: Nathan Buckley in talks to coach AFL’s new Tasmania team
Former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley has revealed he’s held major talks with the AFL’s newest team about taking on a massive role.
Nathan Buckley has emerged as the frontrunner to be appointed coach of the Tasmania Devils, with the Collingwood great revealing he has had talks with the Devils boss about a role in the AFL’s 19th team.
The Devils will join the AFL in 2028 and apart from building a new stadium in Hobart, choosing a head coach is one of the top priorities for the league’s expansion team in the Apple Isle.
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Buckley told SEN radio on Monday he still has the coaching “bug” and had met with Devils CEO Brendon Gale for wide ranging disucssions about the franchise.
The 52-year-old was grilled by his On The Couch co-hosts on Monday night about his desire to coach Tasmania.
“There are some people in the football industry who I think would be great for the Devils and I advocated for them,” Buckley said, adding his recommendations were around football operations, not coaches.
Pressed on whether Buckley was asked if the discussions covered whether he wanted to coach the Devils, he said: “Yeah it did. That was in the first convo and there’s a long runway to where the Devils have got to get to.
Watch Nathan Buckley speak about the Tassie Devils coaching job in the video above
“They’ve got bigger fish to fry upfront. They’ve got to get the stadium right, there’s a lot of stuff keeping (Gale) occupied.
“I answered him the same way I’ve answered the whole time — I don’t know whether I’m going to find the right fit.
“I still love the idea of helping people along their journey and the Devils opportunity is quite different to any other opportunity you’ll find yourself in.”
Buckley said he would need to accept “the pragmatic view” that the Devils are unlikely to be contending for a premiership during the inaugural coach’s tenure.
“I can honestly say from our meeting at the end of last year to this coming out, I haven’t spent any time on it. I sat at the grand final last year and saw Brisbane win and thought, ‘Geez if you’re going to do it you want to be there’. That’s also part of the thinking.”
He expects a coach to be appointed around the end of this year or the start of 2026.
“I don’t think you can build your academies effectively without knowing the philosophy of the senior coach and his values for the game.
“I think the list management and recruiting was the biggest ticket to get right in the footy department.
Buckley said he loved Tasmania but was still tossing up where the Devils job is right for him.
“I love it from a nature perspective,” Buckley said.
“I’ve been there on leadership camps, been to Dark Mofo a couple of times, been to Cradle Mountain — it’s an edgy joint.
“If you want to get away from it, I think Tassie is a great escape but it’s more than that. It’s an really exciting project.
“When you take a role there you are 100 per cent in. It’s going to be exciting for the people of Tasmania and the AFL.”
Buckley, who led the Magpies to the 2018 grand final before stepping down in 2021, had no doubt he would be a better AFL coach today.
“I know I’m well equipped,” he said.
“That’s probably the reflection of your tenure and what you did well and what you did poorly. Only in retrospect do you get to understand that.
“I’ve got no fears that I could do the job well, it’s just whether I want to do it.”
Fox Footy’s Jon Ralph said Buckley would be “almost the perfect coach” for the Devils coaching role.
“They are extremely keen at the Devils to advance talks with Buckley who has to be seen as the strong favourite now.”
Devils CEO Brendon Gale told the Herald Sun: “We won’t be taking it to the market. We will find a handful of people who can tick some boxes and clearly Nathan is one of them.
“I have always had a high regard for him. He did a very good job at Collingwood. It’s hard to win flags.
It’s not easy coaching Collingwood. It’s a big club. It’s hard to coach and manage and lead and it wasn’t always smooth sailing (off the field) under his tenure so he was very successful there. We have really enjoyed our discussions and there will be more of them.”
Buckley and former Sydney Swans coach John Longmire are the frontrunners for the job, while Chris Scott has been mentioned as a candidate but is likely to sign a contract extension with Geelong beyond 2026.
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