The vacant coaching job at North Melbourne remained an elephant in the room at the 1999 AFL premiership reunion, according to John Longmire.
Longmire is expected to be North's top target in their search for Brad Scott's full-time successor, with speculation rife the Swans coach will be offered a contract worth $1.5 million per season by the club he played 200 games for.
Longmire recently travelled to Melbourne and caught up with Glenn Archer, who is on the panel that will help the Kangaroos find their next senior coach, and other 1999 premiership teammates.
"Nah, he didn't," Longmire said, when asked if Archer informally raised the matter.
"I'm not commenting on that job because, as I said a couple of weeks ago, I've got a job here and that's what I am focusing on."
Longmire attended the event alongside John Blakey, now his right-hand man at the Swans, plus luminaries Archer, Wayne Carey, Adam Simpson and Denis Pagan.
Carey had suggested there would be a "lot of banter around Johnny Longmire and the coaching role".
"There wasn't chat with me," Longmire said.
"We were there, believe it or not, to talk about other things in people's lives. Other than what happens with me.
"Just catching up with your former teammates and staff members who you haven't seen in a long time. I really enjoyed it ... tall tales were told."
Longmire's current contract runs until the end of 2020 but he could potentially ask for an early release if tempted by a Godfather offer from North.
The expectation is Longmire will sign another deal with the Swans later this year, with chief executive Tom Harley and chairman Andrew Pridham having both publicly backed the incumbent as the right man to write the club's next chapter.
However, the speculation will continue to bubble until the 2012 premiership mentor recommits or North appoint somebody else.
"I haven't got more to add really ... it's not something in my control," Longmire said.
"I'm focused on here, making sure we win against the Hawks. Then I'll be focused on the week after that."
Longmire is yet to raise the subject with his players.
"It's not something we need to worry about. It's not something there's a focus on (internally)," he said.
"It's something for other people to talk about."
Adding another layer of awkwardness to North's discussions is the fact that Rhyce Shaw, Longmire's former assistant at the Swans, is doing a sterling job as the Kangaroos' caretaker coach.
Paul Roos handed Longmire the reins at Sydney, as part of a textbook succession plan, at the end of 2010.
Longmire has since become one of the league's most highly-rated coaches.
The Swans won a flag in Longmire's second season and haven't missed the finals during his tenure.
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