‘Curveball’ candidate who could pip Hird in Bombers coaching race
An unexpected name has bobbed up and could potentially derail James Hird’s quest to return to the top coaching job at Essendon.
According to Nine’s Footy Classified journalist Damian Barrett, Fremantle assistant coach Jaymie Graham is among the finalists for the vacant Bombers job.
Fremantle assistant coach Jaymie Graham in 2026. Getty
Graham, who works as Freo’s forward line coach, is also on the shortlist for the Carlton job, making him the only candidate being pursued by both heavyweight clubs.
The veteran assistant has been credited for building the Dockers’ dynamic attacking game, which has helped elevate them into the current premiership favourites.
While Barrett does not know who else will join Graham on the Essendon shortlist, Hird, interim coach Dean Solomon and Essendon champion Mark McVeigh are expected to be in heavy consideration.
All three are Essendon greats, with Graham the sole outsider.
“(Graham is) on the shortlist to become the coach of Carlton and I can reveal (on Monday night) that he is on the very same shortlist to become the next Essendon coach,” Barrett told Nine’s Footy Classified.
“That (Essendon) shortlist might be down to as few as four names. The first round of interviews and chats were completed last week and I believe as early as (Monday night) some of these candidates are being told they’re either successful or unsuccessful at getting to phase two.
“I do believe Graham is one of the four to be moving into phase two of the Essendon coaching search.
“He’s the only person to have reached the second phase of the coaching search at both of these clubs.
“Other names in the Essendon search, James Hird, (Sydney assistant coach and former Essendon player) Mark McVeigh, there’s an unknown around Dean Solomon who’s the current interim coach, and he might be getting a path through to the second phase regardless of the results that he is mounting.
“Other names, (Adelaide coaching director) Murray Davis has been out there, (Melbourne assistant coach) Troy Chaplin is another I know who did get a first round interview as well and I also believe that (Bulldogs assistant coach) Daniel Pratt has also been a person of interest for Essendon. Outside of Graham, I don’t know who has officially made it through to the second phase.”
Carlton and Essendon are both on the hunt for new coaches, after moving on from Michael Voss and Brad Scott respectively during the 2026 season.
The Blues have reportedly narrowed their search down to Graham, Geelong assistant James Kelly, St Kilda assistant Corey Enright and interim coach Josh Fraser.
The Bombers, meanwhile, have felt more focused on bringing in someone familiar with Essendon and its complexities.
Hird has felt the frontrunner across the race given his previous experience as both an Essendon champion player and previous head coach.
In the running: James Hird is currently director of coaching at Port Melbourne but has made no secret of his desire to once again coach the Bombers. Getty Images
But Barrett believes Graham making it to the second round, as the only outsider in the mix, could prove to be the spanner in the works for the Hird camp.
“The curveball for James might be Jaymie Graham. It might be as simple as that. It might be the one outside the Essendon family and branch of candidates and the one person of interest outside of that. Who knows how it plays out from here,” he said.
Geelong champion Jimmy Bartel, however, remains bullish on Hird as the man to not only take the coaching reins, but also unite a fractured club.
“I think what strengthens the Hird campaign is Matthew Lloyd, who’s pretty pragmatic with his opinion of the Bombers, he’s gone along and watched Essendon these last few weeks as a fan with his family and he’s sat down there and said they’re a broken club and maybe the man to turn it around is James Hird,” Bartel said.
“I look at Lloyd talking about it, and I think it only strengthens James Hird’s case.”
An SEN report on Tuesday morning suggested the final four candidates for the Dons coaching role are Graham, Hird, McVeigh and Davis, with Solomon also still in the mix if he chooses to put his hand up.
