Essendon coach James Hird is still hopeful Mark Thompson will stay at the AFL club.

Thompson and the club remain in negotiations about his future.

Thompson and Hird have been on holidays this month and Hird said on Monday they have not spoken for a few weeks.

But Hird said they remain on good terms, despite Thompson effectively saying at the club’s best and fairest function earlier this month that he only wanted to stay at Essendon as senior coach.

Hird did not attend that function and there was widespread speculation at the time he could be sacked because he had decided to appeal against last month’s Federal Court verdict.

“We’re fine – we’ve had a very good relationship for a long time, we still have,” Hird said.

“Bomber is an Essendon person and he’s been a great Essendon person.

“He’s played a lot of games, captained a premiership team, (been) a great coach at Geelong, he was terrific here (as head coach this) year and he was terrific in the first three years we’ve had together.

“I’d love to see Bomber around the place and I think every Essendon supporter would.”

Hird is also confident he will stay Essendon coach, despite ASADA issuing amended show cause notices to 34 current and past Bombers players over the club’s 2012 supplements program.

Hird has served a 12-month AFL suspension over the saga, with Thompson coaching the team this season while he was banned.

“I’m here to coach – I’m the coach of Essendon and I plan to coach next year,” Hird said.

“I’ve been told I will be the coach next year, so anything more than that is speculation.”

Asked if his situation could change, depending on the result of the ASADA action, Hird replied: “Let’s see what the outcome is first.”

Hird fronted the media on Monday for the first time since the start of the month, when his future at the club appeared tenuous.

He stood alongside fellow Essendon great Mark Harvey, who has returned to the club as an assistant coach.

The recruiting of Harvey has heightened speculation that Thompson might leave Essendon.

“In some way, shape or form, I was always going to finish up where I started,” Harvey said.

But Harvey, who was sacked from the head coaching job Fremantle at the end of 2011, said he had no desire to run his own team again.

“I’ve had my time as a senior coach,” he said.

Harvey added he had no problems with returning to Essendon, despite the club’s ongoing problems.

“I’m not clouded in any of this – I come in here with open eyes,” he said.

“I’m just here to make sure the club is stable and they galvanise through this time, that we get on with business, which is playing football and winning games.”