Former Collingwood coach at the verge of of AFL coaching return after eye-opening call.

Former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley has spoken on whether he could eventually return to the AFL landscape, with intrigue into the champion ex-Magpie’s future spiked amid West Coast’s search for Adam Simpson’s successor.

Buckley has often emerged as one of the leading names to be considered for a coaching vacancy over the past three years, however the 51-year-old almost always swats away speculation of a desire to return to the hot seat.

Buckley has quickly become a leading name in the media after leaving Collingwood midway through his 10th season in charge of the club he won six best and fairests with.

While confident in his coaching ability should he ever look to return to a senior coaching role, Buckley’s tune hasn’t changed.

“In short, no (my attitude hasn’t changed),” Buckley said on SEN. 

“I’ve got no doubt I could do the job well, but I’ve held that opinion since I’ve been out.

“Absolutely, I think you do everything better with the experience.”

While admitting any return to clubland would likely come as a senior coach, the drive to step back into the heavily scrutinised role is yet to offer much appeal to Buckley, who has often been critical of the media’s treatment of the game’s mentors.

While not putting a line through an eventual return to coaching, Buckley admitted there was little chance of a comeback soon.

“In the space I’m in now, I’m not in,” Buckley said.

“I don’t know exactly how it all works, you’ve got to have all these conversations. It’s really difficult to answer, because nothing has progressed at all.

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“… The way it needs to occur is for me to actually sit down and decide that the last three or four years, which I’ve really enjoyed, that there’s a fire burning that needs to be quenched. I can’t say that there is.

“That’s not to say that there won’t be something that changes that or flicks the switch. Right now it’s where it’s been for the last couple of years.

“I’m enjoying this time outside of the footy on the fringes.”

Buckley coached Collingwood between 2012 and 2021, winning 117 of his 218 matches in charge of the powerhouse club.

The Collingwood great took the Magpies to the 2018 grand final – which was won by Simpson’s Eagles – and won a total of five finals matches from five separate September series.