{"id":741136,"date":"2026-06-16T23:19:14","date_gmt":"2026-06-16T23:19:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/741136\/"},"modified":"2026-06-16T23:19:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-16T23:19:14","slug":"what-the-club-deserves-hird-responds-to-report-that-left-legend-horrified-and-explains-old-essendon-photo","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/741136\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018What the club deserves\u2019: Hird responds to report that left legend \u2018horrified\u2019\u2026 and explains \u2018old Essendon\u2019 photo"},"content":{"rendered":"

Essendon legend James Hird firmly believes the Bombers\u2019 coaching search is not a \u201cboat race\u201d, adamant the club will run a \u201clegitimate process\u201d despite reports focusing on president Andrew Welsh\u2019s connections to potential candidates.<\/p>\n

The Bombers during their bye week are sharpening their hunt to find their next senior coach following Brad Scott\u2019s sacking last month.<\/p>\n

Watch every match of every round of the AFL Premiership Season LIVE and ad-break free during play on FOX FOOTY, available on Kayo Sports | New to Kayo? Join now and get your first month for just $1.<\/a><\/p>\n

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After early speculation that Hird, a former teammate of Welsh\u2019s, was the frontrunner for the role \u2013 prompting at least four possible candidates to publicly air their hesitancy about applying \u2013 a report last week suggested interim coach Dean Solomon was Welsh\u2019s preferred option<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The latter report left triple premiership Bomber Tim Watson alarmed.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019d be horrified if they did this,\u201d Watson told SEN Breakfast on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would be absolutely horrified that my club would do that and not go out there and run a proper process to find out the best candidate.<\/p>\n

Solomon: “Focus is on these players” | 09:25<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019ve got to go out there and find out whether or not the person you are going to appoint is the best candidate and is the best person.\u201d<\/p>\n

Watson also suggested Welsh shouldn\u2019t be part of the selection process, adding a separate committee \u201cat arm\u2019s length\u201d should instead be established.<\/p>\n

Speaking on Footy Classified on Tuesday night, Hird reiterated his desire to return to the Essendon coaching chair \u2013 11 years after he was sacked in the wake of the infamous supplements saga \u2013 and remained adamant the club would run a thorough process.<\/p>\n

\u201cI don\u2019t think it\u2019s a boat race. There\u2019ll be a legitimate process,\u201d Hird told Channel 9 when asked about the Solomon-Welsh report.<\/p>\n

\u201cI haven\u2019t spoken to the club, but everything I\u2019m hearing is they are going to run a process.<\/p>\n

Roberts open to Hird Bombers return | 00:55<\/p>\n

\u201cYou hear different stories about \u2018it\u2019s Dean\u2019, \u2018it\u2019s John Longmire\u2019, it\u2019s myself. But from what I understand, they\u2019re going to run a proper process, they\u2019re going through (what) the criteria should be around the coach and, as I said three weeks ago, I want to put up my hand and go through the process if that\u2019s possible.<\/p>\n

\u201cI might look silly in hindsight, but I\u2019m sitting here today and I believe there\u2019ll be a comprehensive process that goes through all facets of different coaches \u2013 coaches who have been in and around (clubs), new coaches, coaches like myself and Dean Solomon \u2013 to have a red-hot crack at it, because I think that\u2019s what the fans want and what the club deserves. I think that\u2019s what the footy club will do.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hird last week was also pictured with ex-club president Paul Little and legendary Bombers coach Kevin Sheedy in inner Melbourne before heading to the MCG for Neale Daniher\u2019s funeral. It was suggested \u201cthere\u2019s got to be a little bit more to it\u201d than three friends catching up<\/a>, considering Sheedy has previously pushed for Hird\u2019s return as Essendon coach and Little has reportedly been working behind the scenes to get Hird back to the club.<\/p>\n

James Hird and Paul Little arrive ahead of the State Funeral for Neale Daniher. Picture: Daniel Pockett\/Getty ImagesSource: Getty Images<\/p>\n

Asked if he was leaning on Little and Sheedy\u2019s support as part of his bid to be Essendon\u2019s next coach, Hird said: \u201cI wouldn\u2019t say \u2018leaning\u2019. Paul and \u2018Sheeds\u2019 are very good friends of mine.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe were invited to sit next to each other at Neale\u2019s funeral and the ridiculous nature \u2013 the scuttlebutt \u2013 that we were \u2018plotting to scheme\u2019 on our way, that was silly. We were there to respect a great man.<\/p>\n

\u201cI lean on both of them for a lot of decisions in my life. Definitely when it comes to coaching and the sort of coach I would like to be, I\u2019d lean on both of those people.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Essendon legend James Hird firmly believes the Bombers\u2019 coaching search is not a \u201cboat race\u201d, adamant the club…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":741137,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[560],"tags":[638,64,63,55,639,85],"class_list":["post-741136","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-afl","tag-afl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-australian-football-league","tag-australianfootballleague","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/741136","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=741136"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/741136\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/741137"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=741136"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=741136"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=741136"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}