New details emerge after Geelong rocked by coach's scary collapse before AFL preliminary final

Geelong's preparations for their preliminary final showdown with Brisbane have been rocked after assistant coach Steven King collapsed at training on Friday. King, who is one of the final candidates for the vacant West Coast coaching job, was rushed to hospital after suffering a "medical episode" at GMHBA Stadium on Friday morning.

The 45-year-old collapsed on the field while talking to colleagues and players, and he was quickly tended to by medical staff. According to reports, King was mid-conversation with Jeremy Cameron when he collapsed. King remained under observation in hospital on Friday afternoon, with club officials saying they expect him to recover.

Cats head coach Chris Scott later said the situation isn't life-threatening. However he admitted it was unlikely King will be part of the coaching panel for the clash against the Lions at the MCG on Saturday.

"For us to prioritise his health, it would be irresponsible for us to even consider him to be around over the next 24 hours or so," Scott told reporters about an hour after the incident. "I'm led to believe that there is a chance that he could get a clean bill of health really quickly, but out of an abundance of caution it just seems logical to us and the right thing to do.

"In these situations it does reinforce that there is a right thing that supersedes football. I suspect that if he's feeling good he'll be disappointed to hear that news and even if he's not feeling great he'll be disappointed because he's a competitor. But even at this pointy end of the season it reinforces to us what the right thing is over lesser priorities."

Chris Scott issues update after Steven King hospitalised

Cats players were preparing to undertake their captain's run when King collapsed. They were then ushered into the rooms for about 20 minutes while King received assistance.

"It's upsetting and it has an impact on the players," Scott said. "I don't take the view with these things that you've got to pretend that something isn't happening. What we've got to do is just deal with where we are. Again, the feedback's really positive, so we will do our best to focus on that positive, but it is quite confronting."

Steven King had just flown back from Western Australia

King had just flown back from Perth on Thursday, where he was interviewed about the Eagles head coaching role. Scott said King's workload had "possibly" contributed to the medical episode.

"He is a workaholic, but I don't think it would be prudent for me to speculate as to the causes," Scott said. "He has been working pretty hard and it is a stressful situation to be at this point of the season full-stop.

"But when you add in there is a bit of stress and excitement at the prospect that he could be facing over in Perth. I've only really known him well for 12 months but he's a very resilient character. I'm confident he'll bounce back."

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King has been in charge of Geelong's midfield in 2024 after joining the club from the Gold Coast in 2023. He served as the Suns' interim coach last year after Stuart Dew departed, and had also held roles at St Kilda and the Western Bulldogs.

Speaking on Channel 7 on Wednesday night, Scott gave King a glowing endorsement to become a full-time senior coach. “He would be a big loss to us but I would be really proud of him (if he got the job),” Scott said on 'Talking Footy'. “I think it would be a good choice if they went with him.”

King had a distinguished playing career that included 193 games for the Cats and 47 for St Kilda. He was an All-Australian ruckman, captaining Geelong and helping them win the flag in 2007.

with AAP