Brisbane great Justin Leppitsch firms as senior assistant under Neil Craig Richmond assistant Justin Leppitsch is set to return to Brisbane. Picture: Norm Oorloff Source: HeraldSun JUSTIN Leppitsch is set to return to Brisbane with the Lions' coaching selection committee expected to next week recommend he partner Neil Craig at the helm of his old club. Bombers assistant coach Simon Goodwin has supporters but there are concerns he is tainted by his time at Essendon and his association with controversial sports scientist Stephen Dank. The Courier-Mail can confirm several board members have been cautioned against Goodwin by influential football figures. Selection panel members Leigh Matthews, football manager Dean Warren and CEO Malcolm Holmes met yesterday. The coaching panel was originally commissioned to present two options but The Courier-Mail has learned they now see it as their duty to identify the best candidate rather than ask the board to decide. Holmes and Warren were unavailable for comment last night. The board meets next week but the final decision is not expected until after the grand final. Leppitsch has great support but it is understood a succession plan where former Crows coach Neil Craig mentors the Lions premiership hero for two years before handing him control is currently the preferred model. Swans assistant coach Leigh Tudor is now being linked to Essendon while Hawthorn's Adam Simpson's future remains uncertain. Goodwin escaped sanction from the AFL when penalties were handed down to Essendon coach James Hird, senior assistant Mark Thompson and football manager Danny Corcoran. But Brisbane is in a delicate situation at the moment and there is a strong feeling the man who comes in to replace club great Michael Voss must be squeaky clean. Stephen Dank has alleged Goodwin was taking the peptide Hexarelin during the 2012 season. He also released a series of text messages from the former Crows star in which he requested the "good stuff and good gear." Dank claims the "the good stuff" is a reference to Hexarelin. Meanwhile, the Lions have expressed renewed confidence Brent Staker will remain with the club after meetings with his management last week. Warren said Staker's manager was entitled to seek a longer-term deal for his client but expected he would stay in Brisbane. "We are very confident he doesn't want to go anywhere," he said. He is 30 years old and has had two knee operations so his manager is entitled to look for a longer deal that might offer him more security. But Brent hasn't indicated to us that he wants out.