McGuire vows to stay put through ‘tough times’

EDDIE McGuire has declared he has no intentions of walking away from the Collingwood presidency, insisting he is the right man to help revive the club’s fortunes.

Following calls for McGuire to move on if under-siege coach Nathan Buckley departs, the long-time Magpies supremo said he wanted to be there in the “tough times”.

“I’m actually, to be perfectly honest, in the most exciting phase of my career with what I’m doing at Collingwood and in AFL football,” McGuire said on Triple M radio.

“The members are the people who decide whether we’re going and if I ever thought I was going half rat power and I’d had enough of it, I’d be the first out the door, because I don’t get paid to do this, I’ve got lots of things in my life.

“But I have a great passion for the club and what we’re doing on and off the field and I want to be there in tough times. I don’t want to bail because we won the flag and had a great time. I want to be there as we rebuild.”

McGuire’s comments came as a poll showed 63 per cent of respondents believed the president should leave the Magpies if Buckley did.

Collingwood president since 1999, McGuire was reelected for another three-year term at the club’s annual meeting in February this year.

McGuire acknowledged the club, which is all but out of the finals picture at 6-10, had a job ahead to turn things around.