Senior assistant coach Mark Bickley says ‘unfinished business’ at Adelaide contributed to his decision to remain at the club after missing out on the top job to Brenton Sanderson. 

Bickley was appointed as caretaker coach following Neil Craig’s resignation in July.

The dual Crows premiership captain led the team to three wins from six games in charge, and put his hand up for the vacant senior coaching position at the end of the season.

He progressed to the final round of interviews, but the club opted for ex-Geelong assistant and inaugural Crow Sanderson as Craig’s successor.

Soon after his appointment, Sanderson approached Bickley about staying on at West Lakes as his ‘right-hand man’ and Bickley said he didn’t have to think long before committing to the new coach.

“It wasn’t a really tough decision for me to stay,” Bickley told afc.com.au.

“There was obviously some disappointment from my end, but when Brenton spoke to me he relayed really genuinely that I was part of his plans.

“At the moment … I was keen to stay in South Australia and that was an important factor, but I really see it as having some unfinished business here.

“We’ve been really disappointed with how things have played out in the last two years.

“I feel like I’m invested in this club and I want to be around when we have success.

“I’m really confident that with the list we have, the age profile of the players and the resources we now have in our football department there will be significant improvement and that we’ll be able to develop those younger players into really good players for our footy club for a long time.”

After overseeing the forward line this year, Bickley’s role has expanded to include ‘team attack’.

“That [team attack] incorporates not only the forward line, but how we move the ball,” he said.

“Some of that starts from defence, so I’ll be looking at the kick-ins but also how we attack all over the ground whether it be from turnovers, which are usually ‘faster plays’, or slower plays, which give you a bit more of a chance to set things up.”

Bickley will also have a role mentoring the other assistant coaches and in particular ex-Geelong premiership player and first-year coach Darren Milburn.

“The club has recognised that the senior coaching role is such a big job that mentoring and trying to help the assistants is just too hard for the coach to do,” Bickley said.

“We’ve got some younger coaches this year with Darren Milburn starting in his first season, so he’ll need some development and assistance.

“Between myself and Dean Bailey we’ll be able to make sure he gets access to the right programs to enable him to develop into a really good coach for us.”

Bickley encouraged a faster and bolder style of play during his tenure as caretaker coach, and said he expected Sanderson to adopt a similar approach in 2012.

“I think our style of play became predictable to opposition sides,” Bickley said.

“They put a bit of work into us and were able to get extra numbers back because of the way we moved the ball.

“Hopefully, Brenton brings some new ideas and we’ll change some things so we’re able to move the ball quicker.

“You would think a lot of Brenton’s philosophy would be from what we’ve seen of Geelong over the past few years and their philosophy was that of a team that scored heavily.”

Bickley is thriving on the added responsibility of his new role, but says he still has ambitions to be a senior coach down the track.

“After getting a taste for it last year, it’s something I don’t feel is beyond me, but I’m a realist in terms of the opportunities that arise,” he said.

“Last season, there was a plethora of coaching changes. It was probably the most we’ve seen for a while, so whether that means there will be a period of stability now I’m not sure.

“When you look at where the appointments ended up coming from, the assistants that were poached for senior coaching roles, Mark Neeld (Collingwood-Melbourne), Brenton (Geelong-Adelaide), Brendan McCartney (Geelong/Essendon-Western Bulldogs) and Scott Watters (Collingwood-St Kilda) were really from the top teams.

“All of those coaches came from or spent considerable time at Collingwood or Geelong, who have been the most successful sides over the past five years.

“Looking at that, for me you’d say the best path to becoming a senior coach is to have success at this footy club.”

As the Crows prepare for season 2012 on the track, be sure to visit 19thman.com.au and renew or join the Club for 2012.