Melbourne premiership coach Simon Goodwin sacked after missing AFL finals
The 48-year-old reportedly learned of the decision on Monday night.
Goodwin's future has been uncertain since starting the season with five straight defeats, before another recent five-match losing streak ended their finals hopes.
The historic fourth-quarter collapse to St Kilda late last month ratcheted up the pressure but Goodwin was adamant his future was secure.
'I feel incredibly supported by the board, I have for nine years,' he said last week.
'We've been able to go through these challenges before with clarity and strength and stability to create success.
'In 2019 we finished second last, two years later we won the flag. You can't get consumed in noise.
'All you can do is be really clear about your strategy, clear about your process, understand the challenge ... and go about the process to build the next great team.'
A dual Adelaide premiership player, Goodwin took over at the Dees in 2017 and became the man to lead the team back to the finals after more than a decade of woe.
But their run to a preliminary final was immediately followed by a woeful 2019 season with just five wins.
Melbourne improved in the COVID-shortened 2020 campaign and everything came together in 2021, when the Demons won their first flag since 1964.
Two straight-sets exits followed to kick off a series of trade bombshells that never came to be.
Clayton Oliver was urged to shape up or move on at the end of the 2023 season, while 12 months later Christian Petracca explored a move amid tensions over his serious internal injuries suffering in a King's Birthday blockbuster.
The club's culture under Goodwin also came under question before president Gary Pert put the 'three years of allegations and innuendo' to bed, with the coach avoiding the sack at the end of 2024.
Keen to put the dramas behind them, Melbourne entered the 2025 campaign preaching love and connection but it failed to turn into on-field success.
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