AFL 2024: North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson addresses club’s poor training standards

North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson has responded to a scathing article by Herald Sun columnist Mick McGuane which criticised the club’s training standards. See the column and watch Clarkson’s response here.

North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson sensationally admitted that the club’s training standards are “not at the level that they need to be” in the wake of scathing criticism that there is “an acceptance of poor standards” at Arden Street.

In a video to members which was posted on the Kangaroos’ website on Wednesday afternoon, Clarkson responded to a question about a recent article by Herald Sun columnist Mick McGuane.

McGuane wrote last week that North Melbourne players were underperforming in games because of poor training standards, noting that some were “poles apart” from their peers at other clubs with how hard they work on the track.

READ MICK MCGUANE’S FULL COLUMN ON NORTH MELBOURNE HERE

Clarkson did not defend his side in the wake of the article, instead acknowledging that McGuane’s observations hit the mark.

“Mick’s probably right,” Clarkson said.

“The standards of our group are not at the level that they need to be and that’s what we’re aspiring to do. That’s why we brought in new players, new coaches to try to resurrect that.

“We’ve embarked on this pathway of investing in youth, acknowledging that that’s going to come with some bumpy roads on that path. Part of it will be lifting our standards because if we were training unbelievably well, I think that would be reflected in winning games of football on a weekend. So it doesn’t surprise me one little bit that someone would come and observe your training and say, ‘Oh, I don’t think the standards are good enough’. Because that’s why we’re sitting in the position on the ladder that we are right now.”

Mick McGuane wrote that Luke Davies-Uniacke was one Kangaroos player who was ‘poles apart’ from peers at other clubs with his training standards. Picture: Michael Klein

The Kangaroos remain winless on the bottom of the ladder, seven games into Clarkson’s second season at the helm.

Since 2020, the club has won just 12 or 91 games.

Clarkson called for “patience” from fans as the young group looks to lift its standards, with North Melbourne having entered the season with the youngest and least experienced playing list in the competition.

“Our challenge is how can we lift those standards in our training?” he said.

“I think there’s some growth in all of our players, including some of our leaders. Because the bottom line with a lot of these guys, if they’ve played 60, 80, 100 games of footy at this club to this point in time, they’ve only won 15 or 20 games in all of that time. They don’t know what they don’t know.

“When I first arrived at Hawthorn, it was exactly the same thing. They needed to lift the standards. That was both in the way that they prepared and the way that they played the game. But I can remember getting smashed on The Footy Show for how it doesn’t look like your team’s got any idea, we look rudderless, no direction, what’s your DNA? All exactly the same questions that we’re getting now. We just need a bit of patience and some time to actually embed some of these things that we’re doing and we’ll see some productivity.”

North Melbourne faces St Kilda at Marvel Stadium on Saturday.

Originally published as AFL 2024: North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson addresses club’s poor training standards