Chris Fagan has joined the Carlton Football Club.
One of the greatest coaches of the modern era is now the Blues’ Director of Coaching, a newly created role that will see Fagan be a trusted advisor and sounding board to AFL Senior Coach Josh Fraser.
As well as supporting the vision of the Senior Coach, Fagan will mentor the entire coaching group, draw on his wealth of experience to establish development pathways for the coaches and help drive an elite, sustainable football program that fosters growth and continuous improvement.
Reporting to General Manager of Football Chris Davies, the full-time role will have a match-day component that will be an extension of the support Fagan will provide the coaching group throughout the week.
Fagan arrives at IKON Park having just cemented his legacy in the game as a triple premiership-winning coach with the Brisbane Lions, whom he took from the bottom of the ladder to a dynasty across 10 seasons that included eight finals campaigns and four grand finals.
Prior to his history-making tenure at the Lions, Fagan worked closely with now Blues CEO Graham Wright at Hawthorn and was central in helping to lead the Hawks to four premierships in eight years, including a three-peat of their own from 2013-2015.
Holding one of the most decorated football resumes the game has ever seen, which includes 10 grand final appearances and seven premierships, the three-time AFLCA Coach of the Year now steps into the position he believes he can thrive in.
“While I loved my 10 years as a Senior Coach, this is a role I am passionate about and where I know I can have a real impact in this next phase of my football career,” Fagan said.
“Supporting people to get the absolute best out of themselves is what I love most about football, so the chance to now be able to do that on a full-time basis is incredibly exciting. I can’t wait to connect with each person in the football department, and in particular work closely with Josh to help every coach and player be the best Carlton person they can possibly be.
“In all my conversations with Rob, Graham, Chris and Josh before accepting the role, what resonated strongly was how aligned they were on how to make Carlton a great football club. They shared a clear vision of evolving Carlton into a club that can contend but most importantly, they understand there is still significant work to do to get there.
“To have the senior leadership of a football club share such clarity in their direction, combined with a role that gives me genuine purpose, makes joining Carlton an opportunity too good to pass up.”
GM of Football Chris Davies said today’s appointment of the triple premiership-winning coach continues the Club’s commitment to attracting the best football people to Carlton.
“We want to build our football club around good people and they do not come any better than Chris Fagan,” Davies said.
“Few in the game have his wealth of experience and ability to connect with and get the best out of those around him. Most importantly, he is a proven winner who knows what it takes to build a consistently high-performing environment.
“Chris and Josh have built a connection in recent weeks over a shared philosophy of putting people first and building a program the right way. With Chris on board, Josh will be well supported, our coaches will be well developed and our program will continue to build the clarity and discipline required to be truly elite.
“We can’t wait to welcome Chris and his wife Ursula, their daughters Jessica and Ellen and the entire Fagan family to Carlton.”
