Coach Swapping. Not mid-season thanks.

It's true that in the past some coaches have been treated extremely badly by their employers. When a team experiences a patch of bad form the media and the public smells blood. And in most cases, all the blame is focused on the coach. With growing professionalism of the league, the treatment of coaches is improving. Sackings by media (Damian Drum) are almost certainly extinct. But the coaches want a little bit more. They want to be told, before their contract is expired, whether or not they will be offered a new one. In one way this is reasonable. If a coach knows that he will not be offered a new contract, he can begin looking for a new job, nice and early. This would also be benefical for a club looking for a new coach, as they can start their search earlier. Under the proposed agreement, by July 1st of every year, out of contract coaches will be told whether or not they will be sacked at the end of their contract. Assumedly this means if they are not told they will be sacked then they will definitely be re-signed? It seems like a better deal for the coaches. But if it is agreed to, it could lead to a few problems.

The first problem is this. If a coach has his team in 8th spot on July 1st of the final year of his contract, how does the club judge his success? If they inform him he won't be sacked, and the team falls apart and finishes 12th, the decision could be considered a mistake, and they are stuck with him for another year. By the same token, if a club decides not to offer a coach a new contract, and that coach leads his team to finals glory (perhaps out of spite), then they will face the wrath of supporters. Will clubs extend coaches contracts by one year, just in case? But then they may have to go through the same awkward process a year later.

If a coach is not re-signed, he will likely begin looking for a new club. Other clubs, who have not re-signed their current coach, may rush to employ a free coach. So a scenario could eventuate where a coach goes into round 16 knowing that he will coach another club the next season. The public will also probably know this. Will he put his heart into coaching out his contract, or will he already be preparing for the final season?

Another supposed advantage for coaches is that they will rarely be fired mid contract. If a club terminates a coaches contract after round 22, for example, they will be two months behind other clubs in the search for a new coach. But what about this scenario? A coach has a three year contract. Halfway through the second year, his team is still performing very poorly. For a club, choosing to sack a coach mid season may be a more attractive choice than waiting out the contract. If they do sack the coach early they can join the race as soon as possible.

It could all become very complicated. July may become coach swapping season. Does the AFL want this month dominated by media speculation about which coaches will go where? Do coaches really want to finish their contracts knowing they are doomed? Deciding who will coach the club is a very important decision. During the season, clubs should be focusing on football. They should not also have to be courting new coaches, or agonising over the future of the current coach. Coach swapping season should begin after round 22.