New Carlton coaching director Chris Fagan said the reason he joined the Blues over other AFL rivals was the two existing relationships he has at the club, as well as the opportunity to work with Josh Fraser at a big Victorian club.
Fagan made the shock decision to retire from AFL coaching at the Brisbane Lions after 10 years, playing in the past four grand finals and winning the last three, including the 2026 thriller against Fremantle.
The legendary coach was destined to move to the city of Melbourne to be closer to his family, resulting in a long line of clubs hoping to secure his services.
But Fagan's strong relationship with Carlton chief executive Graham Wright - which was forged at Hawthorn - as well as board member Chris Townsend, helped get the ball rolling for the veteran football person to become a Blue ahead of 2027.
"So fundamentally, I didn't want to be an AFL head coach anymore. After 10 years of doing it at Brisbane, the pressure and responsibility are pretty relentless, and I feel I've done enough of that," he told Carlton Media.
"I wanted to move back to Melbourne to be with my grandkids and daughters. But I didn't want to not be in footy, so I made that known when I finished up at Brisbane.
"A few clubs called after that, which is fortunate. I chose Carlton. Big reason for choosing Carlton was, I know Graham Wright; he's a good friend of mine. Chris Townsend, who's on the board, I know him pretty well. It's always good when there are people you know at a club.
"I like what I saw of Carlton last year. I enjoyed the way Josh coached. I studied all the coaches, and his wisdom and composure for someone who hadn't done it before was pretty extraordinary.
"Part of the decision was that I could get on with this guy and work with him. My job is to help, and I'm looking forward to that challenge. That's the main thing. Carlton is a big club. I haven't done any big clubs other than Hawthorn, I guess.
"And I didn't enjoy the game with the Brisbane Lions when we got pulvarised by Carlton at Marvel Stadium, but I did like the Carlton crowd. I like their passion. I thought it would be nice to get involved in that as well."
Tasmania, Collingwood and Melbourne loomed as potential landing spots, with Fagan holding connections with all of them.
"The roles at the other clubs were similar," he said.
"I just like the idea of a new challenge. I haven't been here before. Big club. That's exciting. That was the main thing.
"I just like the people here. I like the way the team played last year. I can see that they are hungry and want to make progress and want to play finals on a regular basis.
"I want to come to a club that aspires to do that. I think that club is Carlton."
Fagan and Fraser met when the Blues handed the Lions a 76-point loss in Round 21, a week when Fraser lost his father.
Fraser took over as interim coach of Carlton in May when Michael Voss was sacked, ironically after the club's trip to Brisbane in Round 9.
"I found that out post-game, and I thought that was amazing he was even able to get out there and do that," Fagan said.
"He seems like an honest and enthusiastic football person. He's done a good apprenticeship. I appreciate it because I did one myself. I didn't get to be an AFL coach until I was 55. I think that's a great thing.
"He seems level-headed. He doesn't get too emotional. I think that's important. So there's lots of things Josh does well, and I'm looking forward to working with him.
"Anything I can do to help him, I'll do. I'm not the senior coach anymore. I'm a resource for others."
