GREATER Western Sydney expects Mark McVeigh to remain at the club despite the caretaker coach missing out on the senior role to Adam Kingsley.
McVeigh stepped in as caretaker for 13 matches after the departure of Leon Cameron this year, and led the Giants to four wins and nine losses.
The interim coach was carefully considered for the permanent position until the Giants announced Kingsley’s appointment on Monday.
"We couldn't be more grateful for the role he played this year as a caretaker," Giants CEO David Matthews told reporters on Tuesday.
"He entered the process and he's naturally disappointed but I think also pleased with the eventual outcome.
"He spent some time with Adam this morning and our expectation is that there is a long-term future here for Mark McVeigh.
"He's got great values and the players love him, and I could really see him and Adam working really well together."
McVeigh wasn't able to turn the Giants' form around but impressed with a number of positional changes and a hard-line stance on performance after a crushing 73-point loss to Sydney in round 20.
The 41-year-old has been part of the Giants' coaching set-up since 2015 and moved into a senior assistant role at the start of this season before taking the reins from Cameron from round 10.
McVeigh was born in Sydney and raised in NSW but played 232 games for Essendon, a club now in the market for a head coach after sacking Ben Rutten on Sunday.
While the Giants will encourage McVeigh to put himself forward for the Bombers job, the expectation is he will remain in Sydney if he is overlooked again.
"I think that's certainly his intent," Matthews said.
"If there are other roles that are going, then he's encouraged to apply for those in the same way that Richmond have encouraged Adam to apply.
"We love to see people at this club progress but if that opportunity comes up then he should look at it, but (we) certainly see a future for him here."
It took Kingsley multiple attempts at landing a head coach role before being appointed by the Giants, having come close at Collingwood, Carlton, Gold Coast and Adelaide.
The 47-year-old has completed a lengthy coaching apprenticeship. He has been at Richmond since 2019 and was part of its premiership that year and in 2020. He previously spent eight years as an assistant at St Kilda and four at Port Adelaide, where he also played 170 games.
"Having been through a few processes in the past and coming close but not quite getting there, I was just really pleased and super excited to finally get my opportunity to lead a club and take it to where I think I can take them," Kingsley said.
"I felt ready for quite awhile now. It's just a matter of being able to get the opportunity, which I'm so grateful for."
Kingsley is buoyant about the Giants' playing list and what they can achieve next season, with a mix of emerging talent and what he sees as "some really high-quality experienced guys".