Damien Hardwick’s shock decision to leave Richmond has been called a “crisis for the industry” and an example of the immense pressure facing the league’s 18 senior coaches.
Hardwick is reportedly set to step down from his role as the Tigers’ senior coach on Tuesday, ending a 14-year stint at the club which saw him win three premierships.
The 50-year-old’s former teammate Matthew Lloyd said Hardwick’s exit was a sign of the pressure coaches are currently under in the AFL.
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“It’s a shock. I don’t think you can say it’s a good thing that he’s gone,” he told Nine’s Footy Classified.
“There are a lot of coaches who are under stress from one week to the next.
“(Fremantle coach) Justin Longmuir three weeks ago would’ve thought, ‘What’s coaching like? It’s no good’ and then three weeks later he’s back.”
The Age’s Caroline Wilson went a step further, taking aim at the AFL for cutting costs.
“This is a crisis for the industry, don’t get me wrong,” she said.
“The AFL has botched the soft cap. Coaches feel like the scum of the industry, one coach said that recently to Gillon McLachlan. Senior footy managers don’t run footy clubs anymore.
“Ten or 15 years ago there was Geoff Walsh, Andrew Ireland, Neil Balme, senior, strong football bosses. You could probably say now one third of the clubs have them compared to maybe two thirds 15 years ago. That’s another casualty of the soft cap. There’s been no pathways so these coaches don’t have the strong people around them to help them the way they did 15 years ago.
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“What’s also happened is coaches have been told, ‘You’re paid too much, we’re going to cut your wages, we’re going to cut your programs by $3 million a year after capping them in the first place’.
“Now, when the game has never been richer, according to Gillon McLachlan, they’re still $2 million less than they were getting during COVID while the AFL is bringing in fat salaries.”
Hardwick’s decision to quit Richmond comes less than a week after Kangaroos coach Alastair Clarkson stood down indefinitely due to the stress of both the club’s struggles and the AFL’s investigation into historic allegations against him.
Geelong coach Chris Scott, who has been vocal about the stressful nature of the AFL coaching gig, spoke on Clarkson’s decision at the weekend.
“It’s a high-pressure job … this is the worst 10 minutes of my week,” he said during a press conference.
“I don’t know where to rank, but he’s up there, Clarko. If he’s finding it tough, then you can be rest assured that most others find it tough as well.”
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