NEW ADELAIDE coach Brenton Sanderson has revealed caretaker Mark Bickley will remain at the club next season as his "right-hand man".
Bickley was appointed interim coach of the Crows following Neil Craig's resignation in July.
The two-time premiership captain applied for the permanent position, progressing through to the final round of interviews, but was beaten by Sanderson.
Speaking at his first press conference at the helm of Adelaide, Sanderson, 37, said he had asked Bickley to remain at West Lakes as part of his coaching panel.
"The first call I made after I spoke to my family was to 'Bicks'," Sanderson said on Tuesday.
"I rang him last night and he's going to stay on in a pivotal role as my right-hand man, which I'm thrilled about.
"He's critical for our success and will be a great help for me. I mentioned in my presentation [to the coaching selection panel] that if I was to get the job I'd love for 'Bicks' to stay involved if possible.
"It was a hard phone call to make because I know he was disappointed [about missing out on the position], but he's a quality individual. "We spoke for 20-30 minutes about the team and the club and he's on board for next year. I can't wait to work alongside him and the rest of the coaches."
Sanderson himself remained at Geelong after losing out to Chris Scott for the senior coaching position after Mark Thompson's departure at the end of last season.
He edged out Bickley and West Coast assistant Scott Burns, widely regarded as the favourite to secure the position, to become the sixth coach of Adelaide.
The Crows coaching selection panel flew to Perth to meet with Burns on Sunday morning, and by lunchtime had decided on Sanderson, who had given his final presentation a week earlier.
Chief executive Steven Trigg said Sanderson had been the standout candidate throughout the two-month process.
"Brenton was the unanimous choice of our panel and our board and probably from the moment of his final presentation we were really clear in our thinking," Trigg said.
"We didn't miss out on anybody [other candidates] as the banter would have it out there. That's absolutely untrue.
"We were very clear about Brenton from early on, but crystal clear at the time of the final presentation.
"We didn't feel like we had to be rushed, but there was a need for us to move really quickly once we'd got past the final part of our due diligence, to line it up and act really swiftly."
Sanderson, reported to be among the final three candidates of the Western Bulldogs coaching position that was eventually given to Brendan McCartney, declined to comment on his involvement in other interview processes, saying he was thrilled to be taking on the role as coach of the Crows.
"I had a role with the Geelong Football Club which took up most of my energy, but every spare moment I had I was preparing to get this job," he said.
"This is the job I desired and for me it was the best job available."
Sanderson arrives at West Lakes after five years as an assistant coach at Geelong.
The former Adelaide, Geelong and Collingwood player confirmed he'd rejected an offer from Cats coach Chris Scott to stay at the club until the end of the finals series, saying it was "an enormous conflict".
He stopped short of guaranteeing the futures of the other current Adelaide assistant coaches, including Ben Hart, Scott Camporeale and Matthew Clarke, and said he felt comfortable assuming the role without the assistance of an experienced mentor.
"I haven’t had a chance to speak to the other coaches yet," he said.
"I quickly shook their hands this morning, but over the next few days I'd love to sit down with them and see where that all goes.
"I was pretty strong in my presentation though, that I wanted innovative and creative people around me. People who are prepared to work hard in a real energised environment.
"I also want to be challenged as senior coach as well."
Trigg said there would be no limits from the club in giving first-time coach Sanderson the support he required.
Katrina Gill covers Adelaide news for afl.com.au. Follow her on Twitter: @AFL_KatrinaGill