Gold Coast is likely to make a bold play for Rodney Eade in its determination to appoint a respected, experienced coach at the helm of the four-year-old club.
Although Eade, the director of football at Collingwood, has ruled himself out of contention, the Suns seem certain to approach him, having already told other unsuccessful candidates they are determined to appoint a proven senior coach.
The replacement for Guy McKenna is expected to be announced over the coming week with the club honouring commitments to internal candidates Dean Solomon and Andy Lovell to also present for the job.
Fairfax Media understands football director Malcolm Blight, who is a consultant to the coaching panel, has contacted several high-profile AFL coaches to sound them out regarding the position. They have told Blight they would not break existing contracts.
Eade's coaching record and football credibility remains highly attractive to Gold Coast. In his six full years at Sydney he took that club to five finals series including one grand final. In a similar record with the Western Bulldogs, that club played in finals in five out of his six full seasons, including three consecutive preliminary finals between 2008 and 2010.
The club's fall since Eade's departure has been disastrous. Eade left the Whitten Oval after being sacked mid-season in 2011 before becoming director of coaching at Collingwood overseeing the rookie Nathan Buckley and replacing Geoff Walsh in the head football role in 2013.
While Eade said last week that he believed his senior coaching days were over, the timing of Gold Coast's search and that club's belief that its highly valued list of players would flourish under a proven mentor is expected to see Eade formally approached.
Both Collingwood and Eade have been of the view it would be wrong for him to apply or even present for the job given his current role with the Magpies, which makes the predicament for the Suns difficult.
Club chairman John Witheriff remains determined that Gold Coast sticks to its process-driven search. Against that, Eade supporters across the industry see senior coaching as his most fitting role.
The highly regarded assistant Solomon, who was also eyed by Port Adelaide, is overseas and will not present to the Suns until early next week. Development coach Lovell, who is also valued by the club, will also present next week. It remains unclear whether Eade would agree to be interviewed. The Magpies have made it clear they are keen for him to stay but are unlikely to force him to remain should he succumb to a genuine offer from the Suns.
Eade is a former teammate of the Gold Coast football boss Marcus Ashcroft – they spent two years together as Brisbane Bears in the elder player's final two seasons after a distinguished career at Hawthorn. He also enjoyed a close working relationship at the Bulldogs with the Suns' foundation recruiting boss Scott Clayton.
Given the club's stated intention to appoint an experienced senior coach, Eade appears to be a stand-out candidate and the only proven coach on the Gold Coast radar.
Premiership coach John Worsfold has stated he does not want to return to a coaching role next year. Brett Ratten has indicated he wants to remain at Hawthorn next season and Mark Harvey has signed on as an assistant coach at Essendon.
None of the above were seriously approached on that basis while Mark Thompson, who is expected to discuss his future with the Bombers in the coming days, was ruled out of contention by the Suns.
