Bailey keeps cool after getting chop (original) (raw)

Sacked Melbourne Demons coach Dean Bailey has kept his composure and walked away from his post with dignity in an incredible final press conference.

Bailey refused to hit out at the club and said the players were right behind him to the end of his tenure.

The Demons axed Bailey on Sunday night on the back of Saturday's 186-point loss to Geelong.

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He said the humiliating defeat to the Cats was "the straw that broke the camel's back".

He reiterated that the buck stopped with him as the head coach and again refused to blame the players.

"I think the players let themselves down more than anything else," Bailey said.

"They were shattered themselves, it was a game that was played almost outside and in front of them and they were watching what an elite team can do.

"Not one player would go out there any week with the intention to play like that."

He believed he retained the full support of the playing group.

Bailey said he wanted to stay involved in the AFL coaching system.

And he was adamant that he and the club did the right thing over the previous three years by focusing on long-term development, rather than short-term results.

Melbourne president Jim Stynes said he found it extremely hard to tell Bailey of the club's decision.

"It wasn't something I was looking forward to," Stynes said.

"It makes it hard, because Dean Bailey is such a great man and a man of integrity.

"I have a tremendous amount of respect for him."