Carlton have swiftly settled with former list boss Nick Austin following his abrupt exit in the wake of senior coach Michael Voss’s departure.
Blues powerbrokers — led by CEO Graham Wright — enacted serious change last week and it paid off immediately with a surprise win over the Western Bulldogs on Saturday night.
While the future is still uncertain ahead of a season-long search for their next full-time coach, with interim Josh Fraser not interested in applying for the role, the Austin situation won’t linger.
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Carlton initially announced last Tuesday that Austin had “made the decision to move on” before it came to light he had in fact suffered “a brutal blindside”.
“Nick Austin walked into work … not knowing that Michael Voss would also be leaving his job, but also not knowing that he would lose his job,” Channel 7’s Tom Morris said on The Agenda Setters last week.
“He had a meeting for five or ten minutes with the hierarchy at Carlton, and he was brutally told that he no longer worked at the Blues.
“And my understanding is he’s considering his legal options tonight and whether he can take it further.”
7NEWS chief AFL reporter Mitch Cleary said: “So after five years of service at that footy club, five minutes is all it took?”
Morris: “Five minutes is all it took. So you could argue whether that’s right or wrong, but that is a brutal call to make for someone that had no visibility or saw that coming.”
It was unclear how far Austin could take a possible wrongful dismissal challenge but Carlton have ensured no one will find out.
“The Blues had a big win on the field and a nice quiet one off,” Dale Thomas said on The Agenda Setters on Tuesday night.
Veteran journalist Caroline Wilson confirmed the development.
“Carlton have settled with Nick Austin,” Wilson said.
“I wouldn’t say it’s been a great week for the Carlton footy club but that one’s been cleaned up.”
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Austin arrived at Carlton ahead of the 2020 season and dealt with significant change above him over the past 12 months.
Wright, a Collingwood premiership player turned list manager and head of football, arrived for his first CEO posting last year.
Chris Davies arrived as the Blues’ football boss last September following a long stint in the same role at Port Adelaide.
He has taken over Austin’s list management duties “for the foreseeable future”.
