Nathan Buckley and wife Tania confirm marriage breakdown
Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley and his wife Tania have released a statement confirming their marriage has come to an end.
The couple have been married for 18 years but told the The Herald Sun on Friday afternoon that they were officially separated.
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Tania Buckley also confirmed the sad news on her Instagram account on Friday afternoon.
The Buckleys are parents to sons Jett and Ayce - aged 14 and 12 respectively.
In her social media post explaining their marriage split, Tania says it was in the best interests of their boys that the couple went their separate ways.
She asked for the family's privacy to be respected and said they remained committed to co-parenting their sons.
“It has been a tough and challenging year for every family and for ours included,” the joint statement said.
“It is with the utmost love and respect for each other and a true commitment to our sons, that we have made a decision to separate in January.
“We remain dedicated parents and in the interests of our boys, we ask for our family to be given the privacy that is needed.
“We thank everyone in advance for understanding our request and for the unconditional love and support we have received throughout our marriage.”
Couple decided to separate in January
Tania revealed in her social media post that she and her husband decided to separate in January, but had only made it offical now.
The news continues a tumultuous year for Collingwood's coach, who was forced to relocate with his team to Queensland, where they were based during the height of the coronavirus crisis.
Buckley and the Magpies were also heavily criticised during the AFL trade period, particularly with their dealing of the Adam Treloar saga.
The Magpies mentor reportedly moved out of the family home when he returned to Melbourne after spending four months in the Queensland quarantine bubble.
The Buckleys admitted that a "challenging" 2020 had taken a heavy toll on their marriage.
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