Buckley hailed for handling of Tassie disappointment

Nathan Buckley had made it very clear that he wanted the Tasmania coaching job.

The former Collingwood coach put himself right in the thick of the process to become the inaugural Devils coach, but ultimately missed out to Ken Hinkley.

Buckley addressed his disappointment on Fox Footy, insisting that he is glad the Devils found their man even though it wasn’t him.

He admits he has met a “fork in the road” but is happy to focus on his role as Geelong assistant to Chris Scott before deciding what he wants to do next.

“I heard from (Tassie chief) Brendon Gale yesterday afternoon. I had a missed call and then a text, because things were moving pretty quickly,” Buckley said on On The Couch on Monday night.

“Then I woke up this morning, and went to my job at Geelong.

“I think it's taken me a little bit of time to reflect, because I was really keen on it. I was in on it. If you're going to go for a job, you've got to decide that you're all-in on it - and I was.

“I absolutely respect the process that the Devils have run, and I respect their decision with Ken. I think this is what a process is about - it’s about an organisation and learning what its needs are. I’m glad they found their man.

“It leaves me in a really exciting role at Geelong, which I've been at. The future there for me will inform my next step in footy. It’s a fork in the road, but I'm really grateful for where I'm at.

“I determined that (I wanted to be a senior coach) about 12 months ago. That's what I believe that I'm capable of doing, that's what I want to do, but Tassie weren't the right fit.

“They nailed today and Ken nailed today. It’s a tremendous appointment, there’s a great vibe out of Tassie, I thought it was great for the code and great for the state.”

Reacting to Buckley’s gracious comments, SEN Breakfast pair Tim Watson and Sam Edmund felt he handled his disappointment perfectly.

Watson: “He really put himself out there, didn’t he.”

Edmund: “You’ve got to commend the way he went about it. That’s vulnerability, that’s putting yourself out there.”

Watson: “And not just that, that he actually declared that he was going to go after the job.

“He obviously thought, ‘Ok, what else do I need? I need to upgrade my understanding and knowledge of what’s going on in an elite coaching box. I’ve been out for a few years’, so he went and got that job at Geelong.

“Which for some would’ve been a humbling experience but he’s happy to do that. Now he’s missed out on this job.”

It had Watson wondering if the Magpies legend will ever coach at senior AFL level again after falling short on this occasion.

Watson: “Do you think that we will see Nathan Buckley as a senior coach again?”

Edmund: “I don’t know. What happens next with him will be so intriguing.

“He did speak at length about it. I thought he spoke so well with his credit for Ken and Brendon Gale and the text messages they exchanged.

“We mentioned how public he was with his thirst for the job. The fact that he’s gone back into it as well is massive. But some big life decisions ahead for him.”

Edmund spoke of Buckley’s tepid and rapid pursuit of the Melbourne coaching job in 2025.

Buckley was in the mix for the Demons gig but pulled out when the timeline didn’t match as he planned to pursue the Devils role.

Edmund continued: “And what about the sliding doors moments over time?

“The Melbourne process when Steven King was appointed, and he went deep into that process, but at the time he couldn’t actually answer the question when it came from Melbourne that, ‘If we go with you, would you absolutely take the job if you were offered it?’

“He couldn’t answer that question and Tassie played a role in that somewhere as well.

“So you think what might have been. He’d gone all chips in on Tassie.

“So now what happens? Is he a candidate long-term to take over from Chris Scott at Geelong?”

Buckley will continue with the Cats for at least the remainder of the 2026 season.