Former Adelaide Crows coach Brenton Sanderson has penned an "open letter to the industry", detailing the detrimental effect that the intense life of an AFL coach can have on one's health.
The man affectionately known as "Sando" helmed the Crows from 2012 to the end of 2014, having the club a kick away from a Grand Final berth in his first year in charge. Following his departure from West Lakes, he would be an assistant to Nathan Buckley at Collingwood, for six seasons.
That coaching career came after a reasonably successful playing one - Sanderson was a best and fairest winner with the Geelong Cats in 2001.
The 52-year-old now presides over the AFL Coaches Association as its chair.
It's a breadth of experience that brings the requisite verity to Sanderson's stance.
Published in The Age newspaper, Sanderson implored the industry to support the 18 senior coaches and their assistants with as many resources that prioritise their health and wellbeing as is possible, while offering a glimpse into the coach and the man he became late in his Crows tenure.
"I was shutting the people out who were trying to help me. I just couldn't see it at the time. That's the reality of emotional instability in coaching. It doesn't announce itself. It sneaks up on you. You become agitated with people. Your tolerance dissipates, and your patience fades.
You become less enjoyable to be around and the positivity that you once exuded becomes something you have to generate consciously."
"As a football industry, we need to do a better job of looking after our coaches. The emotional toll on coaches, and senior coaches in particular, is accumulating rapidly. If we don't get ahead of it, we're going to be forced to pick up the pieces after a serious incident.
"We need to ensure coaches have access to education opportunities, including professional development, a uniform approach to termination clauses and genuine pathways for coaches to be identified and developed.
The AFL industry has the opportunity to work together to optimise the environment for coaches, ensuring we continue to attract the best people into the profession. This is vital for the game, now and in the future."
The sentiments feel particularly poignant, given the bevy of assistants vying for the recently opened head coaching positions at two Victorian powerhouses in Carlton and Essendon; two poisoned chalices not only for the state of their respective lists, but for the scrupulous scrutiny that comes with the high-profile nature attached to these dormant giants of the landscape.
