Ross Lyon has opened up on his decision to opt out of Carlton’s search for a senior coach, revealing exactly what he told club president Luke Sayers.
After the Blues had failed to lure Alastair Clarkson to Ikon Park, Lyon was widely considered to be the hot favourite for the job before rejecting the role in a stunning backflip late last week.
Lyon admitted that he had caught Sayers “by surprise” when he called the newly-installed president on Thursday to inform him of his decision.
“I asked Luke previously, I think the day before, for clarity on the subcommittee and the process,” he told Nine’s Footy Classified.
“Then I woke up [the next day], and as I said to Luke, I reflected on all the conversations and what was happening in the media and I said, ‘I’m out’, which took Luke by surprise, but that’s fine. I said, ‘Mate, no regrets I wish you all the best’.”
Lyon admitted that he felt “settled” after pulling his name out of the running to be the embattled club’s next senior coach.
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“I certainly have no regrets on anything,” he said. “It was interesting being back in the arena in a sense for a brief period.”
While he admitted that there was no bad blood between he and Carlton’s powerbrokers, namely Sayers, Lyon is still somewhat in the dark about what happened between he and the club.
“Even I haven’t got both sides of the fence fully,” he said.
“The only one has everything is Luke Sayers, because he has conversations with me and [knows] his position and his board’s position.
“I knew when I put my hand up what would be coming over the fence. There’s a lot of noise and everyone’s got an opinion.
“All the media commentary about my ego was stroked and I didn’t want to go through a process, none of that is completely accurate.
“But I’ll take what I know with me and just leave it at that. I made no assumptions and there were no promises made.”