CARLTON has appointed former Brisbane champion Michael Voss as its new senior coach.
Voss, previously an assistant under Ken Hinkley at Port Adelaide, underwent a stringent interview process over Zoom last week and flew to Victoria for face-to-face discussions with Blues officials on Wednesday.
The latest round of interviews satisfied Carlton's five-person coaching selection panel, led by new football director Greg Williams, and he was announced as David Teague's full-time replacement on a three-year deal on Thursday.
Voss, 46, was a triple-premiership captain and a Brownlow Medal winner during an illustrious 289-game playing career at Brisbane that also included five All-Australians and five best and fairests.
He transitioned almost immediately into senior coaching, taking the reins of the Lions at the age of 34. He spent five seasons in charge of the club, finishing with a 42-1-64 record before being relieved of his duties late in the 2013 season.
Voss joined Port Adelaide at the conclusion of the club's 2014 campaign, where he has acted as a senior assistant under Hinkley for the past seven seasons to re-emerge as a genuine senior coaching candidate once more.
Carlton has been searching for its fifth senior coach in 10 years since sacking Teague last month, with his dismissal coming at the conclusion of a disappointing campaign where the club's finals drought stretched to eight seasons.
The Blues appointed Williams and triple-premiership great David Parkin among a coaching selection panel to search for Teague's successor, with board members Patty Kinnersly and Tim Lincoln – as well as football boss Brad Lloyd – also involved.
The club's new CEO Brian Cook, appointed last week to replace Cain Liddle, became involved in the process at the last minute but ticked off on the club's decision to appoint Voss earlier this week.
The appointment of Voss concludes a drawn-out process to find Carlton's 35th senior coach, with the Blues making a series of desperate pleas to sway four-time Hawthorn premiership great Alastair Clarkson away from his plans to take a year-long sabbatical in 2022.
Ex-St Kilda and Fremantle coach Ross Lyon, as well as former Collingwood coach Nathan Buckley and ex-North Melbourne coach Brad Scott, also turned down opportunities to become involved in the selection process.
It led to Voss and Richmond assistant Adam Kingsley becoming the firm favourites for the position, with Essendon's Daniel Giansiracusa and fellow Tigers assistant Andrew McQualter also shortlisted, though Voss' first-hand experience is believed to have helped him win the role on a full-time basis.
Voss will have an entirely new coaching panel to employ upon arriving at Carlton, with Teague's assistants John Barker, Dale Amos, Brent Stanton and Cameron Bruce all departing this year.
Voss said he wants the Blues to return to the finals in 2022 after an eight-year absence.
"It's largely important not to cap where we want to be," Voss said.
"There's some good talent here and that's one of the real exciting parts of being able to coach this football team.
"I won't step away from embracing expectations.
"We've got a rich history and have had some great success as a football club and we'll embrace those expectations.
"But hopefully we can also shift the narrative a little to how we can actually play for an even greater purpose, which becomes even bigger than the result itself."
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The Lions great is also keen to silence any critics saying he had his chance at Brisbane.
"There's an element of that within me and I am essentially a competitor," Voss said.
"Ratifying that as a player is one thing because it's very easy to make a difference by the way that you play, but you do that very differently as a coach.
"For me as a competitor you're always trying to get the best version of yourself and we're not here to just be part of a group - we're here to be the best.
"That's what as competitors we'll try to strive for."
