Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson endorses Brett Ratten for senior AFL coaching role
Master coach Alastair Clarkson says he’s for former assistant Brett Ratten after the caretaker coach led St Kilda to victory on the weekend, but believes he never should have been out of the coaching game.
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Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson believes the Blues should never have parted with Brett Ratten, endorsing his former assistant for one of the three vacant AFL head coaching roles.
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Ratten, who was part of the Hawks’ 2013-15 triple premiership run, stepped in as interim coach at St Kilda after Alan Richardson was last week and led the Saints to a rousing win over the Western Bulldogs on Sunday.
Clarkson says the 255-game Carlton legend — who was sacked as Blues mentor in 2012 after 120 games at the helm — should never have been out of the coaching game.
“He’s been ready to coach ever since he left Carlton, really, he should never have been out of it, but that’s the brutal nature of our game,” Clarkson said on SEN Breakfast this morning.
“I just hope he gets another opportunity, because he’s got a great footy brain, he’s a great footy person a great fella to boot.
“He made a great contribution to our club and I’m really please that he and (wife) Jo and the Ratten family get the chance to get on the coaching journey again.
“Who knows whether it’s going to be six weeks or a little bit longer, but I’m really hopeful it’s a little bit longer than that.”
Brett Ratten made the perfect start to his coaching role at St Kilda
Brett Ratten open to coaching return at St Kilda and former club Carlton
Clarkson said the tragic death of Ratten’s son Cooper in a 2015 car crash had a profound impact on Ratten and his family.
“He obviously had that terrible trauma in his life with the death of his son Cooper in a car accident, so that knocked the family around a little bit in terms of trying to work out what they wanted,” Clarkson said.
“Obviously, when a family member goes, everything goes back to being family, but slowly, footy has come back into his life.”
Clarkson said he was disappointed for Richardson and fellow sacked coaches Brendon Bolton and Brad Scott.
“I’m disappointed that any club goes through that process of dismissing their coach and we’ve seen it three times this year already,” he said.
“If, on the disappointment of Richo going out, someone’s got to step in and replace him, I’m really rapt that Ratts has got that opportunity.”
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