BRAD Scott will spearhead Essendon's next era as its new coach.
Scott officially entered the Bombers' coaching process on Thursday, with the club's board ratifying the decision to make him their replacement for Ben Rutten on Thursday evening.
The former North Melbourne coach and Brisbane premiership star will depart his post as the AFL's general manager of football to get back in the coaches' box after leaving the Roos midway through 2019.
The 46-year-old coached 211 games at North Melbourne and took the Roos to back-to-back preliminary finals in 2014-15 after assuming the role in 2010, having being an assistant at Collingwood.
Melbourne assistant Adem Yze has also been deep in the Bombers' coaching process, with the former Demon meeting the club's coaching panel multiple times.
Former Essendon coach and captain James Hird had also interviewed for the role, with ex-teammate Mark McVeigh a part of his ticket if he had been successful.
"This is a significant appointment and another important step forward in the progress of our club," Essendon president Dave Barham said in a letter to Essendon members on Thursday evening.
"To reach this appointment, we established a clear and structured coaching recruitment process to ensure we found the right person to take our club forward.
"The coaching process was diligent in its approach and detailed in its execution. It begun with a shortlist of over 22 candidates and included a demanding interview process, game style presentations and external personality profiling to ensure we had the full picture of the successful candidate.
"The coaching sub-committee met for the final time this afternoon to finalise their recommendation. This recommendation was then fully endorsed by the Board at a meeting this evening.
"Throughout the process, it was clear the club required a strong leader and Brad’s track record as a player, coach and administrator demonstrated this.
"At the age of 46, Brad has an incredible resume, with a diverse range of roles and is the experienced figure the club required."
The Bombers sacked Rutten at the end of their season after a late attempt to land Alastair Clarkson failed. Rutten was at the end of his just his second season in charge, with the move for Clarkson a huge catalyst for change at the club.
It saw Rutten removed and chief executive Xavier Campbell quit with two years to run on his contract, while David Barham took on the presidency from Paul Brasher.
Brasher, Simon Madden, Peter Allen and Sean Wellman also departed their positions as board members, with the club's external review running concurrent to its coaching search.
Scott played 168 AFL games between 1997-2006, including the 2001 and 2002 premiership wins.
"We believe Brad has all the attributes to be the long-term coach of the Essendon Football Club," Barham said. "He's a strong leader who will drive standards and establish a winning culture.
"This is a clearly a significant day and another positive step forward for the club. We are under no illusions about the hard work ahead of us. By the same token, we are excited about the challenge of building a club that our members are proud of and one that delivers sustained on-field success."
