Coaches line up for a shot at Suns gig

COACHES keen for a crack at the Suns’ top job have already begun approaching the Gold Coast AFL outfit.

The Bulletin understands the Suns have already been approached by a number of potential candidates for the vacant senior coaching role.

It comes a week after Gold Coast CEO Mark Evans informed Eade that his contract would not be renewed after three tough years at the club.

Carlton assistant John Barker is among the favourites to fill the position.

Sydney’s Stewart Dew, St Kilda’s Adam Kingsley and Hawthorn’s Brett Ratton have also been named as potential coaching targets.

BUT WE WON’T START ANY OF THOSE THINGS UNTIL THE LAST GAMES OUT OF THE ROAD IN TWO WEEKS ... TONY COCHRANE

The search for the Suns third full-time coach is only in its earliest stages and while the club has had brief talks with interested parties, Gold Coast is yet to instigate any of these discussions.

The announcement of Eade’s departure with three games left in the season shocked fans but it has given the club nearly a month headstart on finding his replacement.

Eade’s position formed the biggest part of Evans’ review of the whole football department and the club is yet to decide what happens to members of high performance team, assistant coaches, recruitment and football operations.

Suns chairman Tony Cochrane said the club would deliver no further decisions or findings from the review until after the final game of the season against Port Adelaide on August 19 and the club’s next board meeting later this month.

“We will wait until the end of the season now completely,” Cochrane said.

“Mark will finish off tabling his review at that board meeting and then he will let us know who he wants on a very small sub committee to look at a potential new coach.

“But we won’t start any of those things until the last games out of the road in two weeks time.”