While adamant that his current attachment to the game will come solely via his dual media commitments, former Collingwood steward Nathan Buckley has refused to rule out a coaching comeback.
After severing his 27-year ties to the Pies following the club's Queen's Birthday victory over Melbourne last season, Buckley has entered posts at both Fox Footy and SEN for the length of the 2022 competition.
Yet, despite expressing to AFL Media that the changes in pace and responsibility were agreeing with him, the seven-time All Australian could not entirely dismiss a return to the coaches box someday.
"I haven't missed coaching because I felt like I had wrung the towel dry," Buckley said.
"I feel really content with where things have gone and where they've settled. I don't spend a lot of time looking back; I look forward and I'm really positive about the opportunities that are ahead of me, both through Fox and SEN.
"I think I would coach again, but I really don't know. Planning and projecting forward is a big part of who I've been โ being ambitious and 'achieve this, achieve that'."
The 49-year-old who tied for the 2003 Brownlow Medal alongside Adam Goodes and Mark Ricciuto went on to stress that if a return was to arise, it would amount under different terms.
"I'm probably wanting to go about it a different way, really sit in this space, enjoy the moment for what it is without really projecting too far," Buckley continued
"I'm getting better at that โ over the last four or five years a lot better at that. It has set me up for this [media career] because I'm not really wanting things to turn out a certain way or another, I'm happy to go along and throw myself into this and see where it lands."
Earlier in the week, Buckley spoke candidly on his frayed relationships with ex-Collingwood people, his exit from the club and the revelation that rivals were after his services mere days after his departure from the Holden Centre.
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Collingwood will enter the 2022 season without the official services of Buckley for the first time since 2008.
The Magpies are scheduled to face Greater Western Sydney at Giants Stadium on Sunday afternoon in their sole AAMI Community Series hitout prior to their season opener against St Kilda on March 18.
