Sacked Essendon coach Ben Rutten could be set to land a new role just five days after being sacked by the Bombers.
Rutten was unceremoniously dumped by the club this week after a season which saw the Bombers wind up a disappointing 15th place on the ladder.
While Essendon's hunt for a new coach is set to leave no stone unturned, Rutten was spotted by Seven News at Richmond today where it's reported that he had a meeting with coach Damien Hardwick and other members of staff.
"Ben Rutten was at Punt Road today as he looks to move on from the Bombers," Nat Yoannidis said on Seven News.
"It was an informal chat with Damien Hardwick and other key Tigers footy staff. Richmond is on the hunt for a senior assistant to replace new Giants coach Adam Kingsley."
The now 39-year-old worked with the Tigers between 2015 and 2018 as the Tigers launched their three-peat, and was widely mentioned as the man responsible with leading the club's defence at the start of their winning run, with Richmond taking out the flag in 2017, 2019 and 2020.
Rutten, who played 229 games during his playing career for the Adelaide Crows between 2003 and 2014, joined Essendon at the end of his stint with Richmond, originally as an assistant coach under John Worsfold and then as head coach following the departure of Worsfold at the end of the 2020 season.
The two years in charge have seen Rutten win just 18 out of 44 games however, with the disappointing run of form for the club seeing the Bombers move in a new direction with the clipboard for 2023.
