Brad Scott's admission about Kevin Sheedy amid ugly James Hird furore
The Bombers coach was in an awkward position after Kevin Sheedy's push to hire James Hird.
Essendon coach Brad Scott has emphatically declared there is no lingering tension between himself and Bombers great Kevin Sheedy, after the premiership coach was the lone board vote against hiring Scott last year. Sheedy publicly backed his former captain James Hird to return as club coach after he stepped down in 2015.
The board voted 6-1 to install Scott as coach, with Sheedy vocal in making his case for Hird to have been coach in the wake of the vote. However the decision to hire Scott appears to have paid short term AFL dividends with the Bombers having won three of their first four matches.
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Essendon haven't won an AFL final since 2004, with a return to the AFL finals a key objective for Scott after the Bombers endured a frustrating 2022 season, culminating in the sacking of coach Ben Rutten. While things have gone to plan for Scott so far, he was quick to downplay any potential off off-field conflict within the club.
Not only were questions asked about Sheedy's future, with the 75-year-old also maintaining a role as club ambassador, but concerns about tension in the football department have also been asked. The selection committee reportedly hasn't always seen eye to eye this season, with head of football Josh Mahoney and list manager Adrian Dodoro at odds.
Speaking on Channel 9's Footy Classified, Scott said that everyone at the club was entitled to their opinion, saying it was better for people to be honest. He was also unsurprised by Sheedy's support for Hird, saying he'd expect the same from his former coach at the Brisbane Lions, Leigh Matthews.
"In terms of Sheeds, I was never concerned about his loyalty to James Hird," Scott said. "I would expect nothing less, and I think Leigh Matthews would have the same loyalty towards me.
"I just didn't take that personally. Kevin is a really important part of the history of the Essendon Football Club, and he still has an ambassadorial role and an important role. Sometimes he gets put in difficult situations where he is asked questions about footy matters, so that's a challenge for him. "
Brad Scott dismisses off-field tension among Essendon staff
Three wins from four rounds have seen the Bombers remarkably improve after a disastrous season last year in which they won just seven games in total. The face 2021 premiers Melbourne in an enticing clash between two top-four teams early in the season on Saturday in the Gather Round.
Scott said the reported tension between Dodoro and Mahoney had little to no bearing on the club's overall performance, saying it wasn't unheard of for high-level football staff to disagree on things. Dodoro, a long-time figure at the Bombers, was reportedly removed from the match committee earlier this year, instead taking a new role reporting to chief executive Craig Vozzo.
"The Josh and Adrian stuff goes on, but it's a high-functioning footy department at the moment," he said. "We have meetings on a daily basis and it's not like they are fighting on a daily basis.
"Do they disagree on things? Yes, they do, but that's what a good committee should do. They should have robust debate. I think it's a fully functioning relationship. I don't think you have to be best friends... they are both very good operators in their own right. "
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