I do find it funny there’s so much conjecture about us wanting Buckley when the rumour I think is much stronger was that Bevo was a target if he was available.

Who do we hire? The guy who’s spent 6 years and 2 grand finals under Bevo

4 minutes ago, Ghostwriter said:

8yo me is laughing her freaking head off at this 🤣🤣🤣

46 year old me is laffing mine off

Yep. Still a 4.

Sadface

Life is passing by too quickly

Just realised his kids still live on the Gold Coast.

Commutes when he can.

Fair effort.

1 minute ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Just realised his kids still live on the Gold Coast.

Commutes when he can.

Fair effort.

Commitment.

2 hours ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Me as well mate.

I was all in for Bucks but the fact he had one eye on Tassie still says to me that he was half committed.

I am very excited for Steven King.

You never struck me as a rusted on Buckley man

4 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Just realised his kids still live on the Gold Coast.

Commutes when he can.

Fair effort.

Wait what?

Commutes what, when ?

I like that King has a broad range of experience across his resume.

Started at the peak of Lyon's St.Kilda

Was with the dogs in their rise up to a premiership and reset to a GF.

Couple of years at a struggling Gold Coast side.

Couple of years at the benchmark of the competition.

That range of experience can only be a good thing.

4 minutes ago, dazzledavey36 said:

Just realised his kids still live on the Gold Coast.

Commutes when he can.

Fair effort.

Surely the family moves south

5 hours ago, Deez21 said:

Feel bad for Kelly, he was a close second. He had told his sister he really felt he nailed it but King was always the problem with more experience.

There is always the Carlton gig next yesr if there is no improvement under Vossy in 2026 😁

Hard to know what to make of it really. Didn't see it coming. Based on name recognition/assistant coaching profile he was beginning to look like one of those guys who just wouldn't get their shot, particularly after West Coast knocked him back. But that's happened to plenty of coaches who have gone on to be successful.

The fact that he has been at Geelong getting plenty from an (on-paper) average midfield over the past two years is important, as his time under Dew at Gold Coast is not a glowing reference. They couldn't get that club right. I do also recall him being highly regarded a decade ago at the Dogs. Based on the limited number of interviews of his that I've seen, he doesn't strike me as the most impressive public speaker, has a bit of Goody about him, but that again is no impediment - Goody won a flag.

The priority has to be getting really good people - ideally Geelong people - around him. James Kelly and Jimmy Bartel would be immense gets, as would Cam Bruce although it now sounds like he's staying depending on who you believe. We were so toxic 12 months ago that nobody who was anybody wanted to join as an assistant, hence the untried Jones and Bassett from the SANFL. I do hope King has the contact book to upgrade most of the lines, and to swing Chaplin back again.

As others have covered no doubt, the fact that there were no leaks is highly encouraging for the new administration. On the other hand, questions have to be asked why Skipworth pulled out if this wasn't a Buckley coronation in the end.

Lots of work to do - need to hope Smith, Guerra and King are up to it or else we will be back where we were when Jim had to step in very quickly. Fingers crossed!

26 minutes ago, bing181 said:

It's a meaningless stat without context and without removing confounding variables. e.g., given that there are a limited number of second-time coaches to go round, there will always be more first-time coaches. i.e., even if their success rate is the same, you'd expect to see more success from first-timers simply because there are more of them.

But then you have to look at who they're coaching? Are teams lower down the table more likely to take an experienced coach, as we did with Roos? If that's the case - which I would think it is - it would skew the success stats considerably.

etc. etc.

You are temporarily suspended from Demonland pending an investigation into your reckless use of facts, @bing181. Further violations of ‘Land’s sacred policy of being entirely fact-free, paranoid, and speculative will result in:

• Immediate relegation to the “Game Day Thread Gulag”

• Loss of all posting rights on expected score analysis

• Mandatory viewing of retro Simon Goodwin press conferences until you repent.

Remember: this is Demonland, not New Scientist. Leave your facts at the door.

Pointless to speculate on how King's reign will work out. Only time will tell.

But am I alone in a slight feeling of relief that we didn't get Buckley?

Somehow I find it hard to imagine a man with Magpie DNA being converted into a heart-and-soul Demon.

Be annoyed that the Tassie opportunity existed rather than blame the media figures talking about it.

#Respect

Congrats on king .. he’s experienced is evident no question, hope he’s supported and for the life of all supporters can the board bring stability with new president & ceo no more infighting .. support the footy dept , nail the home base, no more leaks, no more corny love themes etc actions should do the talking!

On Buckley if he wanted the job 100% he’d put his hand up & id say he’s questioning the off field stuff which as first time coach you accept

7 minutes ago, Demonsone said:

Congrats on king .. he’s experienced is evident no question, hope he’s supported and for the life of all supporters can the board bring stability with new president & ceo no more infighting .. support the footy dept , nail the home base, no more leaks, no more corny love themes etc actions should do the talking!

On Buckley if he wanted the job 100% he’d put his hand up & id say he’s questioning the off field stuff which as first time coach you accept

It’s an appointment for a coach, not the secretary-general of the United Nations.

Just now, Ghostwriter said:

It’s an appointment for a coach, not the secretary-general of the United Nations.

Not sure what ur point is?

14 minutes ago, Ghostwriter said:

#Respect

Inside word is that he was told he had to post this if he wanted to breathe through both nostrils in 2026

Fox footys camera angles are annoying me tonight

1 minute ago, Demonsone said:

Not sure what ur point is?

You expect a coach to (quote)…

can the board bring stability with new president & ceo no more infighting .. support the footy dept , nail the home base, no more leaks, questioning the off field stuff

You left out washing the dishes and performing surgery on injured players.

He’s a coach ffs

6 minutes ago, Demonsone said:

Not sure what ur point is?

Don’t say “ur”

Melbourne supporters are supposed to be cheese board, highly educated snobs.

Buckley was pretty keen to change the subject at half time lol.

I think Buckley was mindful that he could be paid massively if he got the Tassie gig with almost no pressure whereas while he might have thought of the idea of winning a premiership as attractive, a lot of things can - by historical evidence - go wrong at the dees.

I was warming to Buckley mainly because I was impressed with how detailed his awareness of game plans, tactics and even obscure players on every list and I also thought he might help to attract talent.

But Kingie comes out of the club that just never bottoms out and that turns middle-range players into guns.

Glad we didn't go with Buckley in the end, I could see the appeal but had cooled on him the last week or so.

Surprised with King, I had a feeling we would go Kelly but King has an impressive CV. Hopefully he can bring a forward thinking gameplan and is strong on culture (but not love in; accountability).

There's plenty of work to do so he should be starting ASAP. He's the Melbourne coach now so he should be clearing his desk at Kardinia Park tonight.

1 hour ago, Pirlo said:

The priority has to be getting really good people - ideally Geelong people - around him. James Kelly and Jimmy Bartel would be immense gets, as would Cam Bruce although it now sounds like he's staying depending on who you believe. We were so toxic 12 months ago that nobody who was anybody wanted to join as an assistant, hence the untried Jones and Bassett from the SANFL. I do hope King has the contact book to upgrade most of the lines, and to swing Chaplin back again.

Haven’t heard a better name than Bartel for that strategy job. I can’t imagine Kelly leaves the Cats when he’s now likely the senior assistant. Very hard to get anyone out of Geelong once they’re settled down there. But it would be nice if he can grab someone.

Chappy linked to Richmond and I suspect King gives him his blessing for a fresh start. We can’t have slow moving Chappy with our backline again. We need to keep the speed of ball movement going.

Target lower level assistants from Hawthorn, GWS, Coll, Freo, Brisbane. Get a diverse group together from across a range of good clubs would be ideal.