Eddie lays out welcome mat for Lumumba

FORMER Collingwood president Eddie McGuire still hopes Heritier Lumumba will one day return to the club.

McGuire (left) was reluctant to comment on Lumumba’s recent move to release recordings of meetings with former coach Nathan Buckley.

“It’s just really sad, I’m not going to make a comment one way or another,” McGuire said on Footy Classified. “It’s very sad for everybody.

“You have to remember I was very close with Heritier and have not spoken to him in any other terms other than pure love and affection over the journey.

“That means nothing at the moment, that is not a criticism or anything it’s just the way I feel.

“And I just hope the door is still a little bit ajar at some stage for Heritier (right) to come back. I think the welcome mat is still out but it’s his prerogative and it is really, really sad. The only thing I want to see going forward is if at some stage there is some way we can make things come together in some way.”

McGuire, who had been away in India on business for the past two weeks, only arrived back in Melbourne on Wednesday.

He revealed he hadn’t spoken to Lumumba for “five or six years” but was hopeful the 2010 premiership defender would be open to a return down the track.

“We want the place to be a happy place,” McGuire said. “As I said I want nothing more if Heritier was able to come back some time so we can all look back on the 2010 premiership, the years of fun that everybody had together.”