Sam Newman calls for his mate Eddie McGuire to take over from Gillon McLachlan as boss of the AFL 

Sam Newman believes former Collingwood boss Eddie McGuire would be the perfect choice to replace Gillon McLachlan as AFL boss.

Last week McLachlan surprisingly announced he would step down at the end of the season after eight years, firing the starting gun on an extensive search for his replacement.

The AFL has enlisted Sydney firm Spencer Stuart to find out a suitable candidate to replace McLachlan, but Newman suggested the league should look no further than Maguire.

Speaking to Tony Sheahan of the Herald Sun, the former Footy Show host said Maguire ‘would be sensible, wise and credible’ as AFL CEO and that he has ‘invested in the game from his youth, he is innately qualified as opposed to head hunting applicants for effect’.

Newman isn’t the first to champion Maguire as the ideal candidate for a high-profile job within the AFL.

Last month, Lachlan’s predecessor Andrew Demetriou said McGuire would make for a great commissioner.

McGuire resigned as Collingwood president in February last year in the wake of a scandal

‘Eddie would make an outstanding AFL commissioner,’ he told The Herald Sun’s Sacked podcast 

‘If you believe in the good of football, and you want football [to thrive], he was a very progressive Collingwood president for 20 plus years, and made some mistakes. 

‘But I defy anyone not to have made mistakes.’

Gillon McLachlan revealed last week that he would leave his role at the end of the season

McGuire’s 23-year reign as Magpies boss came to an end in February last year, when he resigned in the aftermath of an investigation that unearthed systematic racism was endemic at the club. 

Richmond CEO Brendon Gale is one of the early contenders to replace McLachlan, while his Essendon and Gold Coast counterparts Xavier Campbell and Mark Evans are also in the race.

Internal AFL candidates include Travis Auld, Kylie Rogers and Andrew Dillon, while MCG boss Stuart Fox and former Australia Post CEO Ahmed Fahour are considered in the mix.