While only being out of the coaching box for a day, ex-Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley is already being linked to two AFL clubs.
During Monday nights Channel 9's Footy Classified, Cornes believed Buckley would be an "ideal candidate" for either of the expansion clubs, Gold Coast Suns or Greater Western Sydney Giants.
"It crossed my mind whether they pulled the trigger too early."@craighutchy poses the question of whether Collingwood was too quickly to move on from Nathan Buckley after a recent string of solid results.#9FootyClassified | Watch @channel9 pic.twitter.com/vYq4FCY75Z
— Footy on Nine (@FootyonNine) June 14, 2021
“I’ve said all year I think there would be three of four clubs that would reach out.”
“The obvious ones for me if things don’t go well at the Giants or at the Gold Coast Suns, 2022 shapes as him being the ideal recruit for them."
Cornes praised Buckley for his coaching and teams effort against ladder leaders Melbourne. With what he saw on Monday's Queen Birthday match, he thinks Buckley could add great value to either of those clubs.
“I saw something today against the best defence in the league, maybe it wasn’t all doom and gloom (at Collingwood)? If they had just been able to manufacture some of this all year and this sort of ball movement, we just haven’t seen this.
“If they had shown a bit more of that I reckon Nathan Buckley would still be in the job.”
Fellow co-host Matthew Lloyd spoke about Collingwood's current situation. Lloyd discussed what Collingwood GM Graham Wright told him about the next stage of Collingwood's rebuild.
"He (Graham Wright) said when he spoke to Nathan Buckley it was a three to five-year build they feel and they didn't want Nathan Buckley,"
"We (Collingwood) weren't going to go with Nathan to do the next three to five years."
He also agreed with Cornes about Collingwood's current position. That while Collingwood has shown more over the past month, it's been too little too late.
"It's come a little bit too late. Even Scotty Pendlebury admitted that after the match."
Buckley admitted just last week when announcing his departure from the club that he was still uncertain about what his future plans were.
"What’s next for me is sitting with my boys, and choosing the direction for the next bit of my life"
“You never really think about the day you’re not going to be doing this anymore.
“I really don’t know what I will do (next), professionally or personally.”
Current Collingwood assistant and St Kilda legend Robert Harvey will become the caretaker coach for the remainder of the season. The club will begin its search for Buckley's permanent replacement throughout the remainder of the season.
