Buckley, a Brownlow and Norm Smith medallist and six-time best-and-fairest winner at Collingwood, had been retired as a player for just 18 months and had been offered the senior coaching job at the under-siege North Melbourne, which was under new control and had parted with Dean Laidley.
Malthouse, coach of the Magpies since 2000, had made the three previous finals series but not a Grand Final since 2003.
The 2009 season had reached round 17. Collingwood had the Friday night fixture. It defeated Carlton at the MCG for its 11th win of the year.
The next morning at 8am, five men – McGuire, Malthouse, Buckley, Collingwood's CEO Gary Pert and footy operations boss Geoff Walsh – gathered for toasted sandwiches, coffee and orange juice in McGuire's business offices opposite the MCG.
About an hour in to the meeting, Malthouse and Buckley were left together to thrash out McGuire's bold plan for the future – Malthouse to stop coaching the club, no matter what was to happen, at the end of 2011, and for him to then act as a coaching director while Buckley was to take over as head coach.
About 11pm the following Monday, Malthouse signed off on the deal, and an excited McGuire went public the next day.