Who even wants the job? Hird is now a political problem for Essendon

May 27, 2026 — 8:04pm

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James Hird’s now-declared candidacy for the Essendon coaching position has careened overnight into a tricky political problem for the Bombers and a major test of the strength and savvy of the club’s new leadership.

Hird’s campaign for a redemptive return was launched on Nine’s Footy Classified, where he has a useful platform to sell his wares, on the same night that the latest Essendon coaching casualty Brad Scott appeared on Seven’s rival program, The Agenda Setters, to detail bits of what went wrong – to give us a glimpse of the black box’s contents from the crash.

One was campaigning to Make Essendon Great Again, the other was providing a partial autopsy of his three and a half-year stint.

The reaction from the coaching marketplace was immediate.

Ken Hinkley made it clear the next morning on SEN’s Whateley that he would not consider pursuing the Essendon coaching position unless the Bombers settled the Hird question, ie the Bombers needed to clarify whether Hird would coach them, or he wouldn’t put his name forward.

Hinkley pointedly said it was Essendon’s right to do as they wished. If they wanted Hird, that was their prerogative. Rightly or not, Hinkley was raising the notion that a process with Hird would turn into a boat race.

Adam Simpson followed Hinkley’s lead, whereas John Longmire (who appeared with Simpson on AFL 360 on Wednesday night) said there was still much to play out in the process.

Would Nathan Buckley, retooling at Geelong alongside Chris Scott, consider entering the field? I’d be........

© The Sydney Morning Herald