Essendon is set to announce Mark McVeigh as its new senior coach, with fellow candidate and great mate James Hird congratulating him on the appointment.
Hird and McVeigh were both in the running for the position, alongside Jaymie Graham and Murray Davis.
But McVeigh, who is currently in Sydney as Dean Cox's assistant, will take on the role vacated by Brad Scott, who was sacked in May.
"Firstly, congratulations to Mark. He's a great friend of mine and I'm very proud of him... From a personal point of view though, it's very disappointing. I put my heart and soul into the effort but obviously fell short and that's the way it goes."
🗣️ Hirdy reacts to the news… https://t.co/H6qXIvixPA pic.twitter.com/8FxJIsy81Z
— Footy on Nine (@FootyonNine) August 23, 2026
"Firstly, congratulations to Mark. He's a great friend of mine, and I'm very proud of him... From a personal point of view, though, it's very disappointing. I put my heart and soul into the effort but obviously fell short, and that's the way it goes," Hird said on the Footy Furnace.
Hird alluded to the Bombers not having contacted him about the decision, but opened the door to returning to AFL clubland.
"Not yet, but maybe that's coming. Not with me. It's time to move on to other things," he said.
"Obviously I'm down there at Port Melbourne. We've got a finals series to play. We'll see what plays out with some other clubs that have been contacting me. We'll see what happens."
More to come.
