Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson says assistant Leon Cameron would be a “worthy candidate” if he applied for the vacant Port Adelaide job.
Cameron’s name has been linked to the job at the Power, who sacked Matthew Primus after last weekend’s humiliating loss to Greater Western Sydney.
Clarkson said he hadn’t spoken to Cameron about the position, but backed him as a future senior coach.
“Leon was really close to getting a job last year at the Western Bulldogs and he’s been an assistant a long period of time and he’s just waiting for his opportunity,” Clarkson said after his side’s 72-point mauling of the Power.
“He’s certainly been a great contributor to our footy club and, if he got a senior job, he’d be a very worthy candidate.”
Port caretaker Garry Hocking was giving little away, saying he’d found his first outing as a head coach “extremely busy”.
He said he would make a call on whether to throw his hat into the ring at the end of the season.
But he is already making the case that the club doesn’t necessarily need an old head in charge.
“I’ve coached my own sides before so I feel that opportunity that I’ve had previously gives me great skills to be able to lead this club over the next three weeks,” he said.
“I’ll just continue to try and push the group to attention to detail and better standards.”
Clarkson is a former assistant at the proud Port Adelaide club and he said they would find a way back from financial and on-field woes.
“They’ll get some good people involved in their club and they’ll work their way out of it,” he said.
“They’ve been down before and they’ll bounce back again.”