Nathan Buckley has revealed he’s presented to Tasmania twice about becoming the 19th AFL club’s inaugural coach as the Devils prepare to make their appointment by the end of the season.

Buckley is considered among the frontrunners for the gig alongside John Longmire and Ken Hinkley, with Tassie chief executive Brendon Gale saying a fortnight ago “the rubber hits the road now” as the club ramps up its search.

And Buckley, who returned to the coaching caper this season as an assistant at Geelong, first pitched to Gale and the rest of the Devils coaching selection panel, which includes chair Grant O’Brien, football director Alastair Lynch and HR boss, Lauren Jauncey, last October.

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“I presented to them in October (last year), so it’s taken a while for that news to come through. But I did have another chat a couple weeks ago,” Buckley said on Fox Footy’s On the Couch.

“They’ve been really consistent with who they’re looking for, the attributes both on and off the field that they’re looking for.

“The characteristics, and I suppose the abilities that they’re looking for to put a person in that role.

“I’d only be guided by the media on where the other candidates are, or where the process is at, other than to know that the intention is for the Devils to appoint someone by the end of this season.”

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Buckley says he doesn’t feel unsettled by the drawn our process, despite initial suggestions that the Devils were looking to appoint their coach by July.

“If I put myself in Brendan Gale’s shoes and the rest of the Devils’ selection committee, I don’t think there’s been any need to have a senior coach appointed at this stage,” he said.

“The director of footy, potentially, but you’ve got to understand there’s still a season and a half away from starting and about 15 months away from the pre-season beginning. So there’s still lots of time.

“The list build and the figurehead status on that side to build the momentum into 2028 is going to be important, but I still think there’s a long runway for that to happen.”

Nathan Buckley is in the mix for the Tasmania gig (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)Source: FOX SPORTS

Buckley said earlier: “One thing I would say is that everyone external to the club wants all the information that they can get now, that’s just the way it’ll go.

“It’s been the way that we’ve seen it in terms of the license itself, the stadium, the VFL team, the performance centre, the coaching position, the director of footy, who they’re recruiting, when and how they’re going to utilise and build the list.

“So, in the end, there’s a lot of questions that can only be answered as the Devils make those decisions.”

The former Collingwood coach is among several Cats assistants vying for senior roles, with James Kelly and James Rahilly linked to Essendon and Carlton’s vacancies.

But Buckley said it hasn’t been discussed internally at Geelong as something that could potentially impact the group.

“No, it hasn’t,” he said. “And I would suggest from my own experience that can be overplayed in my estimations.”