Coach Alastair Clarkson - NMFC Senior Coach - Coaching & Football Discussion

[gokangas]

Essentially agree. However, I recall the Caro pile on Clarko when he enthusiastically coached from the boundary as we racked up back to back wins. Vendetta indeed.

Yep - we have a few Caro hate targets - Clarko and the NMFC. Sadly both are giving her plenty of fodder.

 

[hilly]

Have to agree. Whilst we all know Caro has a hate agenda against us not everything she says in this article is wrong. Clarko has attracted poor media a few times now and that doesn't help when we are down. He needs to lead by example. The pressures on him with other matters must be crushing at times. But start winning and watch media focus change. Right now we are as vulnerable as we have ever been and will attract this sort of media.

Not sure why you revere her to be honest.

 

[gokangas]

Not sure why you revere her to be honest.

Oh, yes I regularly pay tribute to her.

 

[Zondor]

Why Clarkson is in danger of becoming North’s greatest liability​

By Caroline Wilson​

June 1, 2024 — 5.30am
Clarkson has placed North Melbourne between a rock and a hard place. The Kangaroos’ biggest individual investment looks in danger of becoming their greatest liability, and it is difficult to envisage at this mid-season juncture just how this relationship between club and coach can last for the next three-and-a-half years.
For Clarkson, the job is paramount. The prospect of not coaching or being suspended for a period would prove untenable for him given the scars of the past 21 months. So he needs North’s protection and support at a time when the club rightly remains worried about the impact of what the coach has endured upon his workplace and upon his own performance.

North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson.CREDIT: GETTY IMAGES
To date, the Arden Street workplace has shown no signs of strain despite Clarkson’s mental struggles being reinforced by the failure of a resolution between Hawthorn and the First Nation families and staff, which attempted to achieve closure during the gruelling days in the lead-up to Easter at the Human Rights Commission.
From a Hawthorn point of view, Clarkson, supported by his wife Caryn, bore the brunt of those sessions. Although he and the other ex-staffers have always vehemently denied the allegations of mistreatment of former First Nations players and their partners, the four-time premiership coach acknowledged the hurt suffered by players and others during their time at the club and subsequently. An independent AFL panel made no finding against Clarkson, Chris Fagan and Jason Burt after investigating the allegations.

Three sources close to the mediation process confirmed that Clarkson not only accepted that the families and staffer Leon Egan had suffered pain, but also recognised the existence of historic cultural trauma he could never hope to understand. Those sources did not want to be named due to the confidential nature of the mediation.
Clarkson’s management declined to comment when contacted.
But despite Clarkson’s wellbeing being a watching brief at North, staffers and Clarkson supporters continue to insist the perilous state of Kangaroos’ season has not been reflected in the Arden Street environment. That he swore profusely within hearing range of match-day officials in Hobart during the Port Adelaide game, however, was less well accepted.
As always, Clarkson was immediately contrite, and shattered that he had caused yet another distraction for president Sonja Hood, CEO Jen Watt, football manager Todd Viney and their teams at a time he is trying to demonstrate his control and leadership to a young, struggling team.


The AFL bears some responsibility for Clarkson’s behaviour on the bench, having failed to adequately penalise him in March after the Jimmy Webster incident. At the very least, given the competition’s subsequent crackdown on slurs, league bosses should have banished him from coaching on the sidelines for a period.
Now North, with some prodding from head office, have done just that, with Clarkson to remain in the coach’s box on game days, which is an extraordinary action when you consider Clarkson’s status in the game. It is unfortunate the club took so long to organise Clarkson’s counselling with Pride Australia given the potentially serious nature of his confrontation with those St Kilda players.
But the AFL has gone soft on the decorated coach partly because the game’s bosses from the commission down remain as worried about him, as North are, and harbour ongoing concerns – as they do for Brisbane Lions coach Fagan – over the cumulative effect on his wellbeing.

Alastair Clarkson’s Roos are yet to win a game this year.CREDIT: AFL PHOTOS
AFL boss Andrew Dillon is not to blame for the catastrophe that has been the Hawthorn racism saga, but nor does he boast any power to resolve some tactical missteps from the previous administration at the time the issue became public during grand final week in 2022. Any financial settlement from Hawthorn with Clarkson cannot take place until after the First Nations case takes place in the Federal Court or misses that deadline.

Even before North and the AFL started worrying about Clarkson’s wellbeing, the club placed a number of checks and balances around him. Clarkson admitted he needed them, having said he had not always fared well when given too much power at Hawthorn after Stuart Fox and Fagan departed. A back-up team led by Viney, Watt and including the club’s strategic and legal boss James Gallagher was placed around him from the start.
But the inescapable conclusion is that after a season-and-a-half, the Clarkson era at North has been catastrophic, and punctuated by just three victories from the 24 games he has coached, on top of the off-field drama. In fairness, Brett Ratten did not manage one win when he stood in for the senior coach when physical and mental health concerns resulted in Clarkson last year taking a break from the game.
Clarkson reigned supreme at Hawthorn because his undisputed coaching greatness collided with one of the all-time great Hawks teams and a more-than-solid back-up crew.



Eddie McGuire thinks that Alastair Clarkson should be slapped with a suspension for his latest alleged comments.
He was high maintenance then as now, but his bad behaviour came in an era of softer standards when swearing at journalists in media conferences was a laughing matter and violent outbursts – while frowned upon – were an affirmation of a turbulent passion that was extolled as his one wood.
Now it has become his Achilles heel at a time when his team sits 18th, not looking capable of victory.

Clarkson’s last win, in round 23 last year, cost North Melbourne the No.1 draft pick and a generational talent in Harley Reid that even the raft of concessions subsequently granted to the Kangaroos could nowhere near compensate.
His appointment at the end of 2022 was almost immediately followed by the publication of historic allegations of mistreatment by First Nations families at Hawthorn. Clarkson immediately and has to this day denied the allegations of racist treatment, but his triumphant North Melbourne homecoming was sullied and placed on hold.

The uncertainty surrounding the coach was a contributing factor to the departure of No. 1 pick Jason Horne-Francis.​

Clarkson has often defended his outbursts by claiming they were underlined by a fierce determination to stand up for his players, colleagues and club. But those claims at North Melbourne now fall on deaf ears.

He stayed too long at Hawthorn and fell out with club chiefs, now departed themselves, who treated him poorly. But his appointment at the Kangaroos heralded a bright new era for the club.
Who could have predicted that North’s coaching saviour would become the Arden Street elephant in the room?

Translated for the common person. “Moooooo”. :stern look

 

[William Caresser]

If it’s not working, you don’t give it oxygen. Again - nothing stops this except better performances on the field. And once they are happening, this goes away.

Wilson and the others know full well what Clarko inherited and why the performances are poor. It's just convenient for them to conflate that with their campaign to destabilise him and the club. It's unrealistic to expect the performances to get better in the short term but you can still make sure the footy world knows the club is unified even though it's tough.

 

[koshari]

Translated for the common person. “Moooooo”. :stern look

seroius question, what is she gonna do for a story of clarko were to go???

The uncertainty surrounding the coach was a contributing factor to the departure of No. 1 pick Jason Horne-Francis.​

No, the gaming of the draft by his step father was why he left, infact the deal was set in concrete even before clarko was coach.

but hey dont let the truth spoil a good story

 

[Hearts to hearts]

Wilson and the others know full well what Clarko inherited and why the performances are poor. It's just convenient for them to conflate that with their campaign to destabilise him and the club. It's unrealistic to expect the performances to get better in the short term but you can still make sure the footy world knows the club is unified even though it's tough.

Everything that has come from the club sends those messages.

 

[Spud11]

Clarko free…..ooooh ooooh Caro’sth arrow’sth gonna be a blinder…..”the afl ith a dithsgraceth…clarksthon neeeeeedssssth to be sthusthpended..norsthhh Melbournesthhh shthould be deregisthered…..languishthing at the botthom of the ladder…..dissssthgraceful…..it’s justh too much!!”

sitting next to Caro on the calcified panel be like:

 

[Colby Cheer Squad]

He was leaving regardless. This just opened up an opportunity.

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Yes I think this is the reality right here. He was going to serve out his contract so as not to appear like a bratty little prick but the Hawthorn racism saga created a diversion and a justification for the opportunistic campaigner to leave a year early.

 

[Colby Cheer Squad]

Have to agree. Whilst we all know Caro has a hate agenda against us not everything she says in this article is wrong. Clarko has attracted poor media a few times now and that doesn't help when we are down. He needs to lead by example. The pressures on him with other matters must be crushing at times. But start winning and watch media focus change. Right now we are as vulnerable as we have ever been and will attract this sort of media.

I don't believe we are as vulnerable now as we were in mid 2007 with a mountain of debt and a Chairman who was telling us to take the R word out of our vocabulary despite having struck a handshake agreement with Andy D to move all home games to the Gold Coast.

 

[ohmygewd]

AFL, senior journos and the security guard have in for Clarko at the moment and are somewhat baiting him into getting that suspension.

Biggest issue with Clarko going to the box is that we really need him on the bench as he gives the players instant feedback and encouragement when we need more than ever - bit disappointed that the higher uppers don't see this and bat for him more.

Bigger issue is the media trying to make us like the yanks where they mind their p's and q's...this is Australian, every c@#t swears so get over it!!

 

[Passmore]

Lol. It's like all Caroline's wet dreams arrived at once.

That one damn nasty image.

 

[franjon]

Well that was three minutes I'll never get back. Cheers gk.

Three minutes? I read Caroline Wilson, that was it.

 

[fnarr fnarr]

Where are the club leaders sticking up for Clarko? Someone needs to stick their head above the parapet and tell those in the media with a clear vendetta to go and get ****ed. Would an Eddie McGuire or Jeff Kennett (ironic, I know) take this crap from Caro etc? Stare these pricks down and put them in their place.

 

[Merlin007]

Where are the club leaders sticking up for Clarko? Someone needs to stick their head above the parapet and tell those in the media with a clear vendetta to go and get ****ed. Would an Eddie McGuire or Jeff Kennett (ironic, I know) take this crap from Caro etc? Stare these pricks down and put them in their place.

wise man (Denis Pagan) say: don't be seen talking to fools, as people may not be able to tell the difference

 

[ChopChopDigDig]

Where are the club leaders sticking up for Clarko? Someone needs to stick their head above the parapet and tell those in the media with a clear vendetta to go and get ****ed. Would an Eddie McGuire or Jeff Kennett (ironic, I know) take this crap from Caro etc? Stare these pricks down and put them in their place.

Meh. I don’t think the club should give this issue any more spotlight. Everyone knows this is a total mountain out of molehill, but Clarkos past behaviour has made him an easy target.

Clarko and the club should just focus on getting a win, and ignore all the outside noise.

 

[DunderHead]

Meh. I don’t think the club should give this issue any more spotlight. Everyone knows this is a total mountain out of molehill, but Clarkos past behaviour has made him an easy target.

Clarko and the club should just focus on getting a win, and ignore all the outside noise.

Yep retorting to this sort of stuff just gives further ammunition. We are the easiest target at the moment and nothing we say will change the narrative. Just need to win, Get the signatures of guys who may be considering leaving, win the signatures of some senior players to bring into the club.

 

[shinboner magic]

Too funny. Comments turned off.

Typical give it but can't take it.

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Will play the female card when the pile on starts

 

[Sillygit]

Oh, they would be absolutely champing at the bit for us to respond in some way. That is their whole game plan. A 48 hour story, no matter how f*cking stupid, then becomes a week or two long story with the back and forth. They get to write even more crap completely unrelated to football. Even better, from their perspective, the story becomes about them because of the directed response. All their christmases at once.

Becuase the AFL media is a giant steaming pile of turd. They are not interested in reporting on the game, they want so badly to turn everything into a soap opera. It's not worth engaging with at all either from the club, or even just us as individuals.

 

[The acurate one]

sitting next to Caro on the calcified panel be like:

Unless I am totally misinterpreting your post, it is well known her hatred of us dates but many decades and yes I have in the past alluded to how much she gets off watching us fail.

But gee mate that is next level.

And this is a family site

 

[Colby Cheer Squad]

Will play the female card when the pile on starts

Whilst people on this board continue to reach for the disgustingly out of date and sexist slur USC to describe Caro, then we can hardly criticise her if she does play the female card when a pile on starts. She's perfectly justified in doing that.

 

[Passmore]

Unless I am totally misinterpreting your post, it is well known her hatred of us dates but many decades and yes I have in the past alluded to how much she gets off watching us fail.

But gee mate that is next level.

And this is a family site

"Family site" as in Manson Family?

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[Caracas]

Where are the club leaders sticking up for Clarko? Someone needs to stick their head above the parapet and tell those in the media with a clear vendetta to go and get ****ed. Would an Eddie McGuire or Jeff Kennett (ironic, I know) take this crap from Caro etc? Stare these pricks down and put them in their place.

To be fair, McGuire was forced out by the media.

 

[Caracas]

Meh. I read Caro’s article yesterday morning. While I’d prefer not to be reading this type of thing right now, it’s certainly not an article that’s difficult to just let slip through to the keeper. Sonja won’t be losing any sleep over it.

 

[koshari]

wise man (Denis Pagan) say: don't be seen talking to fools, as people may not be able to tell the difference

Also said stay off media street.