VFL assistant Mathew Buck has been announced as Carlton’s new AFLW senior coach, replacing Daniel Harford, who parted ways with the club after five seasons following a review of their women’s football program earlier this year.
Buck joined Carlton in 2021 as an assistant coach in the VFL and worked alongside Luke Power in the Blues reserves. He has run optional skills development sessions with the women and non-binary players since February.
Carlton’s AFLW team has a new coach.Credit:Getty Images
Carlton president Luke Sayers said Buck’s passion for development and maximising potential in young people complemented the Blues’ list, as they have 14 of the side’s 23 players under the age of 23.
“His football IQ, passion for development and a desire to build an elite high-performance environment was why Matt has been appointed,” said Sayers.
“Importantly he backs this passion up with a clear philosophy of what is required to maintain high standards, professional standards, working-class, blue-collar Carlton standards, to get the best out of team.”
Buck, who has a background in education, said the appointment meant a lot to him and that he quickly developed a passion for the women’s side after spending time coaching the players earlier this year.
“I’ve been so hell-bent on the path of coaching, of wanting to improve all the time, I’d never kind of turned my head sideways to the women’s game. But I had the opportunity earlier this year to work with the girls and the players around improving their skills,” Buck said.
“And what I found was a really driven group who had some great skills and just needed a little bit more guidance on, you know, some method around that and that really inspired me.”
He added the group had really great fundamental skills that he was excited to develop, with a focus on driving elite standards at the club.
“For me, and what I’ve promised for the players already when I met them last night, was just we’ll spend some time together one on one because I need to know what they’ve been through and kind of how it’s been for them and a really clear understanding of where they’re at and where the possibilities are for growth,” said Buck.
“Once we’ve done that, we look at what are elite behaviours and are elite standards and highlight those and we make some promises to ourselves and then it’s up to me to make sure that I drive that and I drive those standards for the players.”
The independent review into the Blues’ program came after two disappointing seasons and three seasons without a finals appearance.
A key recommendation of the review was the need for a full-time AFLW senior coach to improve the overall performance of the team and develop foundations for future success.
The review found: “There are some key barriers to success, relating to systems, culture, coaching structures and insufficient leadership to support and drive professionalism and elite behaviours.”
Buck’s appointment was a key priority to the club following the findings as the club wanted to embark on a new stage of their women’s program and focus on achieving long-term goals of winning premierships.
Carlton captain Kerryn Peterson said the team was excited about the new appointment and eager to get to work for the upcoming season.
“The sense of excitement is at fever pitch at the moment,” said Peterson.
“The girls are raring to go and I’ve already kind of started that process getting in here and working with Bucky … And we’re just ready to go.”
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