AFL 2023: North Melbourne says its strong enough to stop Alastair Clarkson from becoming a ‘bulldozer’

North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson says the targeting of his players lead to his outburst at a female reporter, as football boss Todd Viney said they won’t let Clarkson become a “bulldozer.”

MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA – FEBRUARY 24: Kangaroos head coach Alastair Clarkson speaks to his players during the AFL Match Simulation between North Melbourne Kangaroos and Richmond Tigers at Arden Street Ground on February 24, 2023 in Melbourne, Australia. (Photo by Daniel Pockett/AFL Photos/Getty Images)

North Melbourne has urged Alastair Clarkson not to lose his cool again in stressful situations as the club made clear it was strong enough to stop the premiership coach from being a “bulldozer”.

Clarkson apologised to a female journalist for a threatening comment several weeks ago with the episode only coming to light last week.

The AFL is not expected to sanction Clarkson.

It continued a torrid few weeks for North Melbourne, at a time when the club believes it is showing encouraging signs of a resurgence behind the scenes.

Clarkson is famously stubborn and strong-willed, with Hawthorn facing a constant challenge to channel his football genius while controlling his break-or-breakthrough methods.

Alastair Clarkson and Kangaroos assistant coach Brett Ratten during the club’s practice match against the Tigers. Picture: Daniel Pockett/AFL Photos

North Melbourne football boss Todd Viney said on Monday Clarkson had spoken to the club’s leadership group about how the episode unfolded.

While Clarkson felt his players were “targeted” by the media, Viney’s message was to hold his nerve just as he would expect of his players on and off the field.

“We spoke ongoing about what we expect from our players and standards and behaviour,” Viney said.

“I think 99 per cent of what Clarko does is first class. He is one of the best coaches in modern history. We all have our strengths and we have our weaknesses.

“We have spoken that he needs to tighten up on some of those areas and stay cool, calm and collected when the heat is on. We expect that from our players, we expect it from our coaches.

“He is certainly very strong willed. You don’t do what he has done in football without being very strong willed but part of my role as the GM of footy is to control that. “Make sure he’s not a bulldozer in his words … that due process and strong decision-making is had. We have got a very strong president in Sonja (Hood) and they have a great relationship. Same with (CEO) Jen Watt, who has just started. Communication is the key and I don’t see any issues with us having Clarko as part of the team.”

But Clarkson says he wasn’t out of line when he confronted a female TV reporter who he was later forced to apologise to.

“It was a wake-up call for me because it was just confrontational,” Clarkson said. “I spoke to a female journalist in a manner that I didn’t think was condescending in any way whatsoever really, except that I would have thought her behaviour was untoward.

“She took offence to that and I apologised within the next couple of hours to her.”

Kangaroos footy boss Todd Viney faced the media on Monday. Picture: Michael Klein

Clarkson said he couldn’t rule out a similar confrontation in the future.

“You would think with experience you would (temper it) and I would like to be able to say that I would continue to learn my lessons but this has been with me since I was a kid, if I see something unjust or untoward I will defend,” he told Channel 7.

“I saw something that was unjust and untoward and I felt like I needed to defend our players and our staff.

“I can’t give a guarantee that I won’t do that again in the future, it is a weakness in how it is perceived outside the football club that I’ve lost control. I haven’t really lost control because I was doing what I thought was in the best interests of the club.”

Clarkson said he was confident his record at Hawthorn would stand up against the racism allegations which have yet to be resolved.

“It is tough when you have to confront these types of allegations but we know the program that we put in place at that club over a long period of time,” he said.

“And we know the care that we had for all people within that club, it was the reason why the club was so successful in that period.”

The Roos believe they made significant progress in their clash against Richmond on the weekend, in regard to adherence to their game plan, after only moderate results in the previous week’s intra-club.

But Viney admitted the Roos would have to wait on Ben McKay’s contract, with the Herald Sun revealing this month he was in no hurry to sign.

“It’s been ongoing for a period of time. We don’t like good players coming out of contract and he’s a restricted free agent as we all know. Those conversations have been happening from a year out,” he said.

“His management have indicated that they want to see how he goes, get the ball rolling and see how Clarko settles in but I think hopefully those conversations can start sooner rather than later. We are keen to get him locked away.”

Originally published as AFL 2023: North Melbourne says its strong enough to stop Alastair Clarkson from becoming a ‘bulldozer’