	{"id":122186,"date":"2025-10-14T11:59:44","date_gmt":"2025-10-14T00:59:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/?p=122186"},"modified":"2025-10-14T11:59:44","modified_gmt":"2025-10-14T00:59:44","slug":"buckley-cats-coaching-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/","title":{"rendered":"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season"},"content":{"rendered":"<p data-start=\"312\" data-end=\"433\">The Cats have strengthened their coaching panel with the addition of AFL great Nathan Buckley ahead of the 2026 season.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"435\" data-end=\"729\">After a 280-game playing career, Buckley moved seamlessly into coaching, first joining Collingwood\u2019s staff in 2010 before taking on the senior role two years later. Over the next decade he guided the Magpies to five finals campaigns, including two Preliminary Finals and the 2018 Grand Final.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"731\" data-end=\"1021\">In recent years, Buckley has become one of the most respected voices in football media, offering thoughtful analysis through his work with Fox Footy and SEN. His return to coaching marks a new chapter, bringing both perspective and polish to an already experienced group at Kardinia Park.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1023\" data-end=\"1142\">Executive General Manager of Football Andrew Mackie said Buckley\u2019s appointment was an exciting boost for the program.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1144\" data-end=\"1246\">\u201cWe are excited to add Nathan to our Club and more specifically to our coaching group,\u201d Mackie said.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1248\" data-end=\"1374\">\u201cHe is respected and highly regarded across the football industry and brings a wealth of experience and a fresh perspective.<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1376\" data-end=\"1570\">\u201cIn speaking with Nathan, it was clear he had a strong appetite to return to coaching, and we look forward to welcoming him to our football program to work closely with our players and staff.\u201d<\/p>\n<p data-start=\"1572\" data-end=\"1687\">Buckley will officially join the coaching team ahead of pre-season as preparations ramp up for the 2026 campaign.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Cats have strengthened their coaching panel with the addition of AFL great Nathan Buckley ahead of the 2026 season. After a 280-game playing career, Buckley moved seamlessly into coaching, first joining Collingwood\u2019s staff in 2010 before taking on the senior role two years later. Over the next decade he guided the Magpies to five [&#8230;]<\/p>\n<p><a class=\"btn btn-secondary understrap-read-more-link\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/\">Read More&#8230;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":162,"featured_media":122188,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-122186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season - Geelong Times<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Nathan Buckley will join the Cats\u2019 coaching team ahead of the 2026 season, bringing decades of AFL experience on and off the field.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season - Geelong Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Nathan Buckley will join the Cats\u2019 coaching team ahead of the 2026 season, bringing decades of AFL experience on and off the field.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Geelong Times\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-14T00:59:44+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2025\/10\/LkD-5.jpg?_t=1760403585\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"630\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Matt Worland\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Matt Worland\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Matt Worland\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b1fc5d16b3d91c18dc4fafab89fbbf9f\"},\"headline\":\"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-14T00:59:44+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":227,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/LkD-5.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"News\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/\",\"name\":\"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season - Geelong Times\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/LkD-5.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-14T00:59:44+00:00\",\"description\":\"Nathan Buckley will join the Cats\u2019 coaching team ahead of the 2026 season, bringing decades of AFL experience on and off the field.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/LkD-5.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/LkD-5.jpg\",\"width\":1200,\"height\":630,\"caption\":\"Buckley will officially join the coaching team ahead of pre-season as preparations ramp up for the 2026 campaign. Picture: AFL Photos\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/news\\\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/\",\"name\":\"Geelong Times\",\"description\":\"Free local news\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Geelong Times\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2020\\\/09\\\/times_logo_1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/prod\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/21\\\/2020\\\/09\\\/times_logo_1.png\",\"width\":248,\"height\":37,\"caption\":\"Geelong Times\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/b1fc5d16b3d91c18dc4fafab89fbbf9f\",\"name\":\"Matt Worland\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-AU\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7addfe72648cd6792085ef8cca6cfd8880cf7d5702b0955248fa8be2aaaefa1e?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7addfe72648cd6792085ef8cca6cfd8880cf7d5702b0955248fa8be2aaaefa1e?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7addfe72648cd6792085ef8cca6cfd8880cf7d5702b0955248fa8be2aaaefa1e?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Matt Worland\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\\\/geelongtimes\\\/author\\\/mattworland\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season - Geelong Times","description":"Nathan Buckley will join the Cats\u2019 coaching team ahead of the 2026 season, bringing decades of AFL experience on and off the field.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season - Geelong Times","og_description":"Nathan Buckley will join the Cats\u2019 coaching team ahead of the 2026 season, bringing decades of AFL experience on and off the field.","og_url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/","og_site_name":"Geelong Times","article_published_time":"2025-10-14T00:59:44+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":630,"url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2025\/10\/LkD-5.jpg?_t=1760403585","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Matt Worland","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Matt Worland","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/"},"author":{"name":"Matt Worland","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#\/schema\/person\/b1fc5d16b3d91c18dc4fafab89fbbf9f"},"headline":"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season","datePublished":"2025-10-14T00:59:44+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/"},"wordCount":227,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2025\/10\/LkD-5.jpg","articleSection":["News"],"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/","name":"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season - Geelong Times","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2025\/10\/LkD-5.jpg","datePublished":"2025-10-14T00:59:44+00:00","description":"Nathan Buckley will join the Cats\u2019 coaching team ahead of the 2026 season, bringing decades of AFL experience on and off the field.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2025\/10\/LkD-5.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2025\/10\/LkD-5.jpg","width":1200,"height":630,"caption":"Buckley will officially join the coaching team ahead of pre-season as preparations ramp up for the 2026 campaign. Picture: AFL Photos"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/news\/buckley-cats-coaching-2026\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Buckley added to coaching team ahead of 2026 season"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#website","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/","name":"Geelong Times","description":"Free local news","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#organization","name":"Geelong Times","url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2020\/09\/times_logo_1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/static.timesnewsgroup.com.au\/prod\/uploads\/sites\/21\/2020\/09\/times_logo_1.png","width":248,"height":37,"caption":"Geelong Times"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/#\/schema\/person\/b1fc5d16b3d91c18dc4fafab89fbbf9f","name":"Matt Worland","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7addfe72648cd6792085ef8cca6cfd8880cf7d5702b0955248fa8be2aaaefa1e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7addfe72648cd6792085ef8cca6cfd8880cf7d5702b0955248fa8be2aaaefa1e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7addfe72648cd6792085ef8cca6cfd8880cf7d5702b0955248fa8be2aaaefa1e?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Matt Worland"},"url":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/author\/mattworland\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122186","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/162"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=122186"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/122186\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/122188"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=122186"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=122186"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=122186"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/timesnewsgroup.com.au\/geelongtimes\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=122186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}