Nathan Buckley will not be at the helm of the Magpies in season 2022, according to long-time AFL journalist Caroline Wilson.
Buckley, who has been Collingwood coach since 2012, has come tantalisingly close on a couple of occasions to winning a premiership with his beloved club.
Speaking on Channel Nine's Footy Classified, Wilson has made a brave call regarding Buckley's future at Collingwood.
“I’m not expecting Nathan to bang the desk and say I’m the best man for the job, but I’ve felt that all summer (he’ll leave)," Wilson said.
"I feel as though Collingwood is at the crossroads, Scott Pendlebury is getting older - he’s their best player still - and there were so many other changes at so many levels, I just feel Nathan will go off and have a really good career in the media.
“I’m not predicting anything. I don’t think he’ll be coaching next year - but I’ve been wrong before, and I’ll be wrong again.”
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Prior to taking up the senior coach role at Collingwood, he was assistant coach during Mick Malthouse's 2010 premiership win and 2011 Grand Final loss.
Wilson has attributed the club's recent turmoil over the off-season as potentially proving too much for Buckley.
"You wouldn’t blame him for being fatigued.
“Can he bounce back from that? I don’t know, personally I think he might just think enough’s enough. He got so close twice.”
Buckley has come close twice to tasting the ultimate success - the closest being a famous 2018 Grand Final loss to West Coast off the back of a late but incredible Dom Sheed set shot.
Essendon great Matthew Lloyd on 3AW has made the claim that Buckley will be coaching for his job in season 2021 off the back of an underwhelming 2020 and a horror off-season.
"I went through the record books recently and there's not too many coaches that have been at the one club for that long who have never won a premiership," Lloyd said.
"I just get the feeling that both Collingwood and Nathan could get to the end of the year and say, 'Look, we've had 10 years at it, unfortunately you weren't able to win us a premiership'."
Buckley and his team have had a rocky start to the home-and-away season, as former, as ex-midfielder Adam Treloar and his new team the Bulldogs triumphed by 16 points last Friday night.
Collingwood face another stern test this Thursday when they face the resurgent Blues at the MCG with a bumper crowd expected off the back of capacity being raised to 75,000 fans.