Solomon speaks on his Bombers future; Magpies star says a wildcard team can win the flag

The besieged Bombers have fallen even further into the mire, dropping their second game of the season to old rivals North Melbourne as the spectre of their coaching search continues to hang over Tullamarine.

The Bombers remain anchored to the bottom of the ladder after falling to their fourth-straight loss under interim coach Dean Solomon, who is still yet to declare if he wants the job on a permanent basis, while pundits from across the footy landscape continue to weigh in on the ongoing saga.

“I haven’t even thought about it,” Solomon said of the coach selection process after Essendon’s loss on Sunday.

“Right now, it’s really important to stay really focused and connected to this group, and that’s where my sole focus will lie for the next period of time.

“I’m contracted until next year, so whether I’m filling water bottles at half-time, or I’m assistant coach or whatever, I’m here. I love this footy club, it’s a great football club, and we’re in the swamp right now. It’s been a tough period of time for a long period of time, but I want to be here rolling my sleeves up to help this football club.”

Former Eagles premiership coach Adam Simpson said James Hird’s time out of the AFL system was not an issue in his quest to return to the helm of his beloved side.

Simpson, who is on the panel to select Carlton’s new coach, last month cast doubt on Essendon’s selection process, saying it appeared from the outside to be a “one-man” process, with Hird front of mind.

“What are they doing? It will be a one-man process at the moment. I can’t see anyone going for this job,” Simpson said on AFL 360.

But on Sunday, as part of the coverage on Kayo Sports, Simpson said Hird’s lack of AFL experience since his second stint as Bombers coach ended in 2015 amid the club’s supplements scandal would not be a hindrance.

“It depends on the people around [him]. He has done the job before. He knows how to manage people. If they feel like he is going to galvanise the club, I don’t think it is going to be about winning over the next couple of years – it’s getting the club unified a bit,” Simpson said.

“I wouldn’t have an issue at all if he came in from a coaching point of view. I think they work it out.”

Hird spent time as a GWS assistant coach in 2022 when former teammate Mark McVeigh was interim coach.

The Kangaroos were led on Sunday by midfielder Harry Sheezel, who had 43 disposals, while half-back Caleb Daniel had 40. Luke Davies-Uniacke was busy, particularly early, while Aidan Corr kept rising Bombers star Nate Caddy well held.

The Bombers worked hard, and had two goals from their opening three inside 50s for the match. While they later let the Kangaroos go on a five-goal streak, they continued to battle and closed the gap to 15 points with just over eight minutes remaining in the game.

Youngsters Jacob Farrow, Dyson Sharp and Sullivan Robey impressed, but the Kangaroos settled, winning by 14 points – 10.19 (79) to 9.11 (65) – and are firmly in hunt for their first finals series in a decade.

Solomon has constantly moved the magnets since replacing Scott, with Zach Merrett taking on a new role at half-back, and Ben McKay – who was disappointing on Sunday – switched forward. He has also tightened the Bombers’ defence, providing insight into his teaching qualities.

“If we can be described at the end of the year as a bit more gritty than pretty, that’s what we are chasing,” Solomon told Kayo Sports.

“We understand we can’t get into slingshot, transition footy at the moment with this list profile. We want to win on the inside, control the inside, and squeeze the ground.

“It’s a big shift and there is a bit of risk with that, but I just feel with a young group, they learn, and they value how much impact they can have on a game without the ball in their hands.”

The Bombers last week announced the panel to select their new coach will be Essendon-centric, featuring president Andrew Welsh, vice president Anthony Di Pietro, board members Ted Richards and Tim Roberts, and HR executive Caroline Monzon.

But club great and former skipper Matthew Lloyd questioned why the panel does not include a former coach.

“I would probably have liked to have seen someone who has coached on that panel,“ Lloyd told Nine’s Sunday Footy Show. Nine is the owner of this masthead.

The three-time Coleman medallist had told 3AW over the weekend that a non-aligned Essendon person would have been ideal.

“I would have preferred an external person there who has coaching experience. I think that is the one thing that is missing from this panel, anyone that has coaching experience,” Lloyd said, adding Hawthorn great, former chief executive and Australian Football Hall of Fame Legend Jason Dunstall, and Jimmy Bartel, the former Geelong great and GWS board director, were options the Bombers could have considered.

“They ask a different sort of question, they have a different sort of thought process,” Lloyd said.

The 2000 Essendon premiership star and current Haileybury coach ruled himself out of being a potential senior assistant coach should ex-teammates Solomon or Hird win the top role.

Lloyd maintains that the new coach does not need to be an Essendon person.

“I don’t think it needs to be an Essendon person, just the best candidate for the club,” he said.

Geelong great James Kelly, now a Cats assistant who had a stint as a player at Essendon, is expected to be among the 10 or 15 candidates the Bombers contact. Former Melbourne premiership coach Simon Goodwin said over the weekend he would take a call.

The Bombers insist it will be an open process, with no expectation that applicants be “an Essendon person” or have a Bombers’ background – a criterion pushed by Essendon coaching legend Kevin Sheedy supporting Hird.

Swans premiership coach John Longmire has not ruled himself in or out of the Carlton and Essendon roles.

Magpies star says teams can win the flag from wildcard spot

Collingwood star Darcy Cameron says the Magpies are still eying a top-six finish, but insists a premiership can be won from the new wildcard round.

Successive wins over Port Adelaide and Richmond have not only added pep to the Magpies’ finals chances, but reignited a belief that their best football is good enough to get the job done.

“We set ourselves a goal over the next month, starting off with those two wins was important,” Cameron said.

“We put an emphasis every year on this time, the cold, sloggy games, and it’s good to get it going with a couple of wins. It’s an important month for us. It would be nice to get three [wins].”

The Magpies now prepare to face the Suns on the Gold Coast on Saturday, the latter having lost four straight heading into Sunday evening’s clash against Fremantle in Perth.

Then comes clashes against fellow mid-table rivals North Melbourne and Carlton.

Despite the prolonged absence of skipper Darcy Moore and a shoulder injury to Brayden Maynard, the Magpies are within striking distance of the top six, and automatic entry into the finals, but remain in a mix of clubs jostling for positions seventh to 10th, who will clash in the new wildcard round to determine which two teams advance into an official elimination final.

Teams that finish in the wildcard round will miss out on the pre-finals bye, but Cameron said a premiership could be won via the long route.

“One hundred per cent. You look at what Brisbane did two years ago, won it from sixth spot. Sometimes you play an extra game, get a bit of form and momentum,” he said.

“Hopefully, we are ahead of it. It is an exciting part of the season.”

The Magpies scored more than 100 points on Saturday for only the second time this year, and boast arguably the best defence in the competition, coach Craig McRae noticing a shift in momentum.

“We just feel like we’ve got a bit of momentum building. It’s a nice time of the year to sort of get some things moving, and parts of our game I think are really starting to take shape in terms of things we’re doing really well,” McRae said.

“We’ve got a big challenge next week in Gold Coast. It doesn’t take much to get momentum in this game and all of a sudden you start to get the thing moving in the right direction. This is a really tight competition. You win three, four, five games in a row and you don’t have to worry about the ladder position.”

Suns humbled as Dockers snare sweet revenge in Perth

Justin Chadwick (AAP)

The pressure on Damien Hardwick’s Suns is set to go into overdrive after their horror show of a 51-point loss to Fremantle at Optus Stadium on Sunday night.

Murphy Reid (28 disposals) produced a midfield masterclass and Michael Frederick kicked an equal career-high four goals as Fremantle notched their 14th win on the trot with a 11.14 (80) to 3.11 (29) triumph in front of 50,602 fans in Perth.

The win catapulted Fremantle (14-1) two wins clear of second-placed Sydney and three and a half wins clear of third-placed Hawthorn, with a top-two finish well and truly theirs for the taking.

Gold Coast (7-8) started the year as one of the premiership favourites, but are now on a five-match losing run and face a big battle to turn their season around.

The Suns only had two majors to their name against the Dockers until Jed Walter ran into an open goal in the dying minutes of the match.

Some of Gold Coast’s errors were so bad they left coach Damien Hardwick with his hands on his head in frustration in the box.

Although Gold Coast won the clearance battle 36-24, they failed to capitalise because of some horrendous decision-making and poor skill execution.

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