If not Clarkson, then North should consider handing over Lyon

Adam Simpson, despite a horrendous season, seems committed to the West Coast and vice versa. Another old shinboner, John Longmire, settled in Sydney. The pair can be ruled out.

The noise around Ken Hinkley suggests he intends to remain with Port Adelaide for 2023, which is also when his contract expires.

Former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley has said he doesn’t want to coach in 2023. If so, Kangaroos shouldn’t try and get in his way. Don Pyke, enjoying life as an assistant in Sydney, won’t be pursuing Collingwood’s job, so it’s hard to see him jump North.

From an experienced coach with a successful track record, that makes Ross Lyon, an authoritarian figure who can be polarizing but whose intelligence and coaching ability to land players is unquestionable.

North, thus, should seriously consider appointing Lyon for a short, three-year stint, in the way of Paul Roos in Melbourne, with the club identifying a younger coach for handover in year two or three. Lyon will do better with a limited term, when he won’t be expected to give the flag or even the final.

Lyon will suddenly stop its uncompetitive and inadequate defensive efforts. The team is difficult to play against. Standards will be lifted, player dissent will cease and the most talented players, such as Horne-Francis, Luke Davies-Uniacke, Thomas and others (Hopefully Phillips in that group), will have a clear direction.

Former St Kilda and Fremantle coach Ross Lyon.Credit:Getty Images

North will be more relevant and powerful. They will regain respect and credibility.

Lyon need to convince the Northern hierarchy that he’s not just a coach squeezing lemons from a mature and competitive team and maybe he’s softened up a bit. A stint in the North would give him a chance to show he can lead a successful rebuild (rebuilding Freo has finally paid off).

Apart from Lyon, other proven coaches to ponder are Leon Cameron, whose efforts with the Giants are better than market perception; While he has significant raw material in players, he also faces obstacles in leading an expansion team in an unsupportive market.

Another pathway available to North is the standard coach search process: to identify a group of upcoming assistant coaches, run a rigorous assessment and select one. Having been plagued by the premature signings of Rhyce Shaw (29 games) and now Noble (38 games), the club’s board had to use more external experts for the process.

Fremantle and Collingwood both thrive to date with “untried” assistants in Justin Longmuir and Craig McRae.

The long list of assistants to consider will include those who have already been in progress for other senior gigs: Adam Kingsley (Richmond), Jaymie Graham (Fremantle), Adem Yze (Melbourne), Daniel Giansiracusa (Essendon), plus Ashley Hansen (Carlton) and possibly another.

North’s main selling point should be their access to talent. They lack quality senior players, but will start next season with a pair of No.1 picks, plus LDU, Thomas, Phillips and others. The job was more interesting than when Noble took it.

Load

In hindsight, Noble should have stuck to his career plans working as head of football operations en route to the club’s chief executive role, his roadmap while working as head of football for the Adelaide and later Brisbane Lions.

But the temptation of coaching proved to be the devil’s candy that he, like many others, couldn’t resist. “I’m proud that I raised my hand and chose to try,” Noble said, defending his fateful gamble.

The existential question hanging over the North is unlikely to impact the coach’s prospects in the short to medium term. Not while the current AFL funding model – which saves fiscal failure or weak support – is still intact.

For Roos, the tough challenge will be finding a source of income to replace the benefits of playing at home to Hobart after Tasmania was given the green light as the 19th team.

Finding a trainer is a much easier task.

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