As many as six experienced AFL senior coaches are in the sights of the Tasmania Devils ahead of their expansion into the competition, with three current coaches potential targets for the incoming club.
The Devils are expected to join the AFL for the 2028 season but will look to add a senior coach to their strike force in the coming years as they continue to build their club.
Tasmania has already hired a CEO in former Richmond boss Brendan Gale, while experienced list managers and recruiters Scott Clayton, Derek Hine, and Todd Patterson have also joined the Devils' cause.
The search for the club's first senior coach will be well documented, with those who have already led a side likely at the top of the list of targets.
According to The Age, Gale has named Geelong's Chris Scott, outgoing Port Adelaide boss Ken Hinkley, ex-Sydney coach John Longmire, departed West Coast premiership coach Adam Simpson and former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley as potential targets, while the publication has revealed Gale views Brisbane premiership coach Chris Fagan as a name of "significant interest" to the Devils.
"I've got great respect for Nathan as a competitor and what he's done in coaching," Gale, speaking at a breakfast on Friday, was quoted.
"He's been a very successful coach at a very complex club to manage at times.
"I think he's a continuous learner and I think people tend to get better at things in life, through success and through failure. So, he's a man of great interest.
"Chris Scott's coaching record is formidable. There's a bloke over in Sydney who goes alright, who's betwixt and between at the moment.
"Talking about tough environments, Ken Hinkley, it's pretty tough over there. Adam Simpson, history would suggest it's really hard to win premierships from Perth; he made two grand finals."
Buckley hasn't shied away from showing interest in the Tasmania job, telling SEN this week he has held multiple discussions with Gale.
Scott is contracted with the Cats until the end of next year, while Fagan, who led the Lions to a flag last year and is a Tasmanian, is tied to Brisbane to two more years after 2025.
Hinkley will hand the keys over to right-hand man Josh Carr at the cessation of this season after 13 years in charge of Port Adelaide, making him available for the Tasmania vacancy.
Longmire, who was also part of a succession plan with Sydney over the recent off-season, could return to coaching as he currently holds the role of executive director of club performance at the Swans.
Simpson left the Eagles midway through last year after a difficult end to his tenure with the Perth powerhouse, and is one of the very few premiership coaches not tied to an AFL club.
The Devils are expected to pursue a football boss soon enough also, with the likes of Fagan, Hinkley and Longmire potential candidates for that position too.
