Hardwick holds coaching trump
Rohan Connolly and Jake Niall | August 7, 2009
HAWTHORN assistant coach Damien Hardwick could hold the key to the Richmond and North Melbourne coaching jobs.
The dual premiership player is a leading candidate for both positions, but is believed to hold a preference for Punt Road at this stage, because the Tigers have the advantage of being further advanced in their search for a coach and in their dealings with him.
North may have to decide whether to sit and wait to see if Hardwick wins the Richmond job or pursue only other candidates. The Roos have Hardwick lined up for an interview next week.
Richmond expects to move to a second stage of interviews next week, with Hardwick, caretaker coach Jade Rawlings, Essendon assistant Alan Richardson, Geelong assistant Ken Hinkley and Collingwood assistant Brad Scott having impressed the club's coaching sub-committee with their initial interviews and thus moving to the next phase.
North Melbourne is still finalising its initial list of candidates, with Hardwick, a former Kangaroos under-19s player, caretaker coach Darren Crocker and Sydney assistant John Longmire to be interviewed next week.
While that trio are the only confirmed candidates for interviews with the Roos, Scott and Hinkley, among others, could be added to the list.
But former Kangaroo premiership players David King and John Blakey have pulled out of the race, telling the club they would not be pursuing the senior position.
Richmond has informed four assistant coaches who were candidates - Bulldogs assistant Leon Cameron, Brisbane Lions Justin Leppitsch, Collingwood's Mark Neeld and North Melbourne's Anthony Rock - that they are out of the running.
King, who had already declared he was a non-starter for the Richmond job, said last night he would pursue other assistant coaching roles before attempting to win a senior post. He conceded that being an assistant with Richmond during the past five years had probably damaged his senior job prospects given the club's lack of success.
"I think five years experience as an assistant is enough to go for the gig, but I think when you see that it's been largely unsuccessful with Richmond, I'm probably going to need to get to other clubs and get some more experience," he said.
"When you're comparing CVs, my five years experience at Richmond doesn't help. It probably gives others an advantage. It's very difficult to compare assistant coaches, and on a CV you can only compare the success of those teams.
"I've learnt an enormous amount in five years, which I still think will hold me in good stead, and I still think there will be plenty of opportunity to put my hand up for senior jobs. I'm just going to wait and see what falls."
Richmond will complete its first round of interviews over the next few days. The Tigers will speak to West Coast assistant coach Peter Sumich and Brisbane Lions assistant Adrian Fletcher today, and expect to interview former North Melbourne coach Dean Laidley early next week.
Laidley has only recently returned from a holiday after resigning the North Melbourne job two months ago.
The Kangaroos panel for the interview process will comprise chief executive Eugene Arocca, football manager Donald McDonald and board members Ron Joseph and Trevor O'Hoy.
Arocca said last week that the club hoped to announce the new coach within a month.
Hardwick has also been contacted by Port Adelaide, which wanted to sound him out about serving as understudy to Mark Williams and taking over the senior coaching position at Alberton once Williams completed his two-year contract extension - a Collingwood-like arrangement for which the Power also sought out former Essendon star James Hird.
RICHMONDIn:
Damien Hardwick
Jade Rawlings
Alan Richardson
Ken Hinkley
Brad Scott
Maybe:
Peter Sumich
Adrian Fletcher
Dean Laidley
Out:
Leon Cameron
Justin Leppitsch
Mark Neeld
Anthony Rock
NORTH MELBOURNEIn:
Damien Hardwick
Darren Crocker
John Longmire
Maybe:
Brad Scott
Ken Hinkley
Out:
David King
John Blakey
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