Buckley: Collingwood will try for Brenton Sanderson

Neil Appleby · Joined: 11 Feb 1998 Location: Melbourne

In his interview on ABC radio today Bucks said he'd like to get Sanderson to Collingwood, but may be stymied by the footy department spending cap.
Bucks also said that Heritier Lumumba is almost certain to leave the club.

More here:
http://www.theage.com.au/afl/adelaide-crows/collingwood-will-try-to-accommodate-brenton-sanderson-says-nathan-buckley-20140920-10jt1o.html

Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley says the Magpies will try to make room for sacked Adelaide coach Brenton Sanderson, but can't guarantee there will be space under the football department spending cap.

Buckley also indicated that wingman Heritier Lumumba had nearly walked away from football earlier this season, and was now all but certain to leave Collingwood, while the club remained squarely in the mix to land forward Mitch Clark.

Speaking on ABC Radio, Buckley expressed his sympathy for close friend Sanderson, who he believed had been "dealt a really harsh card".

Buckley was critical of the Crows' handling of Sanderson, who like the Pies coach had served three years at the helm before his shock departure on Wednesday.

"He's an 8/10 or 9/10 coach, who needed help with the one or two," Buckley said.

The task of squeezing Sanderson in at the Westpac Centre is complicated by the AFL's soon-to-be implemented equalisation measures, with Collingwood needing to shed about $1.5 million from its football department expenditure next year to prevent it being slugged around $500,000 in tax.

The Magpies have already filled the breach left by former forward line coach Matthew Lappin, with a replacement set to be announced on Monday.

Buckley lamented that the Crows had rid themselves of a senior coach with two years remaining on his contract.

"Adelaide are going to be paying a mate of mine seven figures over two years and he's not actually doing anything for the club. We're having to move people out of our staff to deal with the equalisation issue. It's extremely disappointing to have to do that, given there's so much waste in our industry."

"I'm not privy to the facts. I've spoken to Sando, so I'm privy to his reality but I'm very conscious there's always two sides to the story. I feel for Sando."

"I don't know if there is [a role for him], but if we can make one we will, because I think he's a great coach."

Buckley maintained that while there had been an element of truth in the reporting of Lumumba's falling out with the club, the details surrounding its crescendo - including the homophobic slur graffitied on a picture at the club - had been overstated in their importance.

"What I would say is that what has been speculated in the press is part of it, it wasn't as acute as may have been portrayed."

However, Buckley conceded that the 199-game dasher had likely run his race at the club.

"It's a mutual understanding. I wouldn't say it's more one way than the other. 'H' has his issues with the club and management at times, and we've had some concerns about the way he's carried himself at times.

"I hope that he finds the right place for him to go and play on, because there was a period through the second half of this year when he wasn't going to do that."

Clark appears a chance to resurrect his football career at Collingwood, having decided to return to the game after retiring in April when suffering depression. Buckley flagged the Magpies' interest in the 26-year-old, who remains on the Melbourne list, but is uncontracted for 2015.

"We've had a few chats with him as I'm sure other clubs have," he said.

"[Mitch] doesn't want to leave Melbourne in the lurch, but his advice was that much the same as H, he needs a fresh environment, a fresh start to give himself the best chance to take the next step in his life.

"We'd love to have him at the football club, but there's a lot to play out."

Sav · Joined: 09 Apr 2006

If sando is 8 or 9 out of 10, what is bucks?

swoop42 · Posted: Sat Sep 20, 2014 10:32 pm

I thought we weren't going to be replacing Lappin with anyone?

Now it looks like we are but that appointment was made prior to the Sanderson sacking.

The Boy Who Cried Wolf · Posted: Sat Sep 20, 2014 10:32 pm

MagpieBat · Posted: Sat Sep 20, 2014 10:40 pm

slangman · Joined: 11 Aug 2003

Spending cap or not, if quality is available you have to make room for it.
Sanderson is quality when it comes to assistant coaches

think positive · Side By Side Joined: 30 Jun 2005 Location: somewhere

He's still getting paid by Adelaide, might see it as a chance to build his rep back up, and go cheap!

Neil Appleby · Joined: 11 Feb 1998 Location: Melbourne

I love Big Anthony but a Line Coach? I can't see it. It's been the area of greatest weakness since, well, since Big Anthony was kicking bags of goals. After the Lappin experiment which led to the exciting strategy of long bombs to a triple tagged Cloke, it's time for a top notch forward coach. If we have to pay a fine for overspending then so be it; that's why they screw us with overpriced, under quality merchandise and never-ending raffle ticket promotions.

Enough is enough; let's just hire a terrific forward strategist and a respected development coach. Speaking of which, who is replacing Tarkyn?

swoop42 · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2014 12:59 am

Yeah with all due respect to Rocca he never struck me as full time assistant quality.

Craig McRae might be upgraded and rewarded for his work as a development coach.

AN_Inkling · Joined: 06 Oct 2007

If anyone can afford to pay the tax it's us. It's the only way we can gain an edge, as other clubs will be unwilling.

The NBA has a similar tax in place, though there it is also on player salaries. It hasn't stopped the big teams from paying, it just locks out all of the small market teams like Oklahamo, so pretty useless as an equalisation measure.

Brown26 · Posted: Sun Sep 21, 2014 7:17 am

Pay him? He's getting 700 a year from Adelaide - he should just come on for the ride! We'll start paying him in 2017 Razz

- Ben

yin-YANG · Joined: 03 Oct 2011

Wherever he goes he doesn't need the money - why not Collingwood?

He could could claim a lot of kudos if the team does well and re-build his reputation - if things do not go well - it is unlikely he would be blamed given the vultures doing the circles around Bux right now!

MatthewBoydFanClub · Joined: 12 Feb 2007 Location: Elwood

World's greatest assistant coach and favourite son of St.Kilda returns to the fold and becomes senior coach when St.Kilda perform their knife in the back routine with Alan Richardson. Sando returns to Collingwood as Buckley's right hand man. Problem solved.

Piesnchess · piesnchess Joined: 09 Jun 2008

Just get Sando to be our forward line coach, and have done with it. If the guy they are touting is Pebbles, then id rather Sando actually, with all due respect.

magpieazza · magpieazza Joined: 28 Feb 2007 Location: Griffith N.S.W

So with equalisation being applied to all AFL clubs, how does Adelaide get to pay out Sanderson and keep some sort of balance in their books?

It isn't fair that Collingwood have to shed 1.5 mill to play by the new rules, we should have had some sort of time limit to phase out. All that good work over many years since 1999 and now we are have to hand back that hard earned money, the AFL can go F@#k themselves!!

So keeping the gate takings means nothing, selling jumpers means nothing because no matter how rich we become we cant use any of it. We may as well have AFL employees working in our shops and memberships should be sold for buggershitall and the AFL can give us a handout when we plead for help.

I'm probably being over simplistic but I want answers as to why Collingwood is busting its arse for the AFL.