Western Bulldogs executive director of football Chris Grant is certain Luke Beveridge is the man for the job at the Whitten Oval.
The 2016 premiership coach has been in charge at the Whitten Oval since 2015 and recently inked a new deal until the end of the 2025 season.
While Beveridge is contracted long-term, the coach has come under intense media pressure as the Dogs sit outside of the top eight through 23 rounds despite having what many believe is one of the best lists in the competition.
Further heat was placed on the club and Beveridge following Sunday’s shock loss to West Coast and Grant admitted 2023 hasn’t been the season they wanted.
Despite this, he remains confident that the decision to re-sign Beveridge last off-season was the right one.
“I remain really confident that we made the right decision there, as does the club,” Grant said on SEN Whateley.
“What we had to consider at that point in time was, is this team and is Luke the right person to steer that team through the next sort of three years because of the nature of this season being the last of his previous contract.
“Our view was that good, bad or indifferent, we believe he had the temperament and the right coaching capability to be able to steer us through that.
“Now, we're making that on the basis of a range of things, as I said, with the aim of being successful during that period too.
“Whilst it hasn't been exactly the season that we've wanted, we've seen some incredibly good stuff but that inconsistent period within games and over the course of the season has remained frustrating for us.
“But at the same time, extending him out was on the basis that we feel and still feel he's the right person to see us through.
“We remain very, very comfortable that we've got the right man to lead us through that.”
While Beveridge stated post the loss to the Eagles that he felt the list at his disposal wasn’t as good as many believe, Grant is sure the Dogs are capable as they push to become the top team in the AFL.
“We're frustrated because we think it's a very capable team, I guess if we weren't as frustrated as we are, it might give us some insight into that,” Grant said.
“The team might have some gaps, or we need to continue to have some evolution in the team, continue development.
“But we are frustrated on the basis of that the group's been able to perform incredibly well for periods of the season.
“It's not really about being a top-four team. The aim is to be the top team, challenging yourself to be the best.
“When you're not in the position that we're currently in, we've got to make sure we're turning over every stone to make sure that we're giving ourselves a chance to get there.”
Grant was also asked whether there was any chance Beveridge could be moved on this off-season, a suggestion he considers impossible.
“No, no, not, not in my eyes or the club's eyes,” Grant said in response to whether the club could sack their coach.
“No, we remain very, very bullish about that.
“We’re hurting after yesterday, understandably and reflecting.
“But at the same time, he's voiced real commitment to the role and we're backing him in.
“So as far as we're concerned, there's no chance that that will happen.
“But, depending on how the end of the season finishes out, we've got to be very open and transparent with ourselves and make hard calls where we need to and we'll do those if we need to.”
The Bulldogs will hope to bounce back against the Cats at GMHBA on Saturday.
They still remain a chance of playing finals in 2023 if they win that game and GWS lose to Carlton at Marvel Stadium on Sunday.