Knights urges chairman to butt out

Essendon coach Matthew Knights has urged club chairman Ray Horsburgh to keep his nose out of on-field matters and has said he's disappointed by Horsburgh's declaration that veterans Jason Johnson and Damien Peverill, faced 'limited opportunities' at Windy Hill.

Horsburgh was quoted extensively in an interview in the Herald-Sun on Tuesday in which he stated that Johnson and Peverill are 'not going to win us a premiership' and forecast that the club would be trading aggressively at the end of the season.

"I'm disappointed the way it's played out particularly for Jason and 'Pev' because they've been fantastic, superb players for this footy club," Knights told the media at Windy Hill on Tuesday.

"The way it’s played out is not fair and probably hasn't been great for them."

"Obviously the chairman of this football club has the opportunity to speak on behalf of the football club at times."

"What I will do at the next board meeting, I will raise this scenario … do it through the right channels … and just try and do it better next time."

"We've got to do it better and that's the way I've got to deal with it."

Asked whether it would be best for the chairman to leave public comments on all on-field matters to the coaching staff, Knights said: "That would be utopia, there's no doubt about that."

"Let's hope it goes a bit better."

Knights said he spelled out to Johnson and Peverill at a meeting three weeks ago that 'opportunities will be tough' because he's looking to upgrade the midfield.

"I said, by no means does this mean you will not get opportunities - you could be playing in two weeks, four weeks, six weeks, depending on the situation."

"Initially there was a little bit of disappointment there but once I explained … the vision of the club, because they're guys with such huge character, they've taken a role in the last two or three weeks that's been absolutely amazing."

"They've been sensational on the track and helping young players along."

"It's better off me being honest and upfront rather than painting a picture that's not realistic."

Pressed to respond to Horsburgh's promise that under-performing and mid-career players would be traded for draft picks, Knights rejected any suggestion that players' careers are on the line.

But he stressed the importance of making the most of this year's national draft prior to the introduction of the proposed 17th and 18th teams.

"We won't be making any judgement on players' careers until the end of the year until I've seen a full season," he said.

"I've said all along that I believe in this list … the list that's in place now, so no careers … are on my agenda right here and now."

"The vision I have for the club is that we want to bring a group through together … so that we can have sustained success over time and win a premiership down the track."

"Obviously with Gold Coast and Western Sydney on the horizon … there's certainly not going to be the same options there for clubs to get their hands on young talent."

"So, like 15 other clubs, we're going to see this year's draft as vitally important to get right."