No stranger to the cut-throat world of coaching, Mark Harvey has ruled himself out of gunning for the Essendon job if James Hird becomes a casualty of the ongoing supplements saga.
Harvey will start counting down his short-term gig as interim Brisbane coach with Sunday night's Gabba clash with the resurgent Western Bulldogs.
Dumped Lions mentor Michael Voss' assistant may not have savoured the way the reins landed in his lap, however, Harvey says he is enjoying the role.
But not enough to throw his hat into the AFL coach's ring again.
Legendary former Essendon coach Kevin Sheedy this week nominated Harvey as a suitable replacement if Hird was ousted from Windy Hill.
And as a three-time premiership player and long-time Bombers assistant, Harvey would appear a good fit.
But Harvey - who was sensationally axed by Fremantle to make way for Ross Lyon in 2011 - said he had no desire to return to Essendon despite feeling for his former AFL club.
"I am obviously very close to Kevin (Sheedy) and it is nice of him to have said that but I am just the interim coach here, doing it for another week and that's all I am focused on," Harvey said.
"I have not made any decision (on his future)."
Still, Harvey felt helpless watching the Essendon saga unfold from afar.
"I have a lot of friendships with a lot of people involved there," he said.
"It's been difficult to sit back and watch and not be able to do anything about it.
"I just hope it gets resolved and the game can move on."
Another drama Harvey wanted to see resolved quickly was more closer to home.
A boardroom coup has erupted at the Lions, making Brisbane's task to recruit Voss' replacement that much harder.
A Leigh Matthews-led rival ticket is set to topple chairman Angus Johnson - but not until December's annual general meeting unless an emergency vote is called.
"The club has to get on with the future of many people around the club and hopefully that gets resolved quickly," Harvey said.
Despite the off-field distractions, Harvey insisted the 12th-placed Lions were focused on extending their promising run of five wins in their last seven games plus a stretch of five straight home victories.
"I have been pleasantly surprised at how calm they have been," he said.
"Really it hasn't affected them one bit."
The Lions will need to be alert - the 15th-placed Western Bulldogs have won three of their last four and began 2013 with a 68-point thrashing of Brisbane.
"In our last game here it is important that our young team gathers momentum," Harvey said.
