North Melbourne vs. Gold Coast: Clarko suggests Kangaroos not bothered by losing no.1 draft pick
North may have lost the number one pick and first shot at Harley Reid but it was the last thing on coach Alastair Clarkson’s mind after their shock victory over the Suns on Saturday.
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North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson says there was “no way” the club would compromise its game plan for the sake of retaining the number one draft pick, which the side has given up following a win over Gold Coast on Saturday.
The Kangaroos recovered after conceding the first three goals of the match, storming back into the contest and ultimately snapping a 20-game losing streak.
With three wins for the season, the Kangaroos have now moved ahead of West Coast by percentage, effectively forfeiting the number one pick in this year’s draft barring an Eagles upset of Adelaide on Sunday.
Questions surrounding the Kangaroos’ desire to win this week were noted by Clarkson, who addressed the line of thought after the side’s win on Saturday.
“I read a really interesting stat, I think there’s only three number one draft picks that have played in premiership teams. That’s not a real big incentive to pull in the number one pick,” he said.
“No matter what was going to happen, we were going to have two first round picks. We’ve got our pick obviously this year which was going to be somewhere around one or two and we had Port Adelaide’s pick from a trade we did with Jason (list manager Jason Cripps) last year.
“We knew we were going to be picking in the first round, that’s where our talent is going to come from by and large and we’ll try and trade for another couple of guys to come into our footy club.”
Clarkson said in the lead-up to the match his side was competitive and had a desire to win, which he again echoed after the victory.
“Our players are competitors, I’m a competitor, we want to win. There’s no way we’re shifting around the magnets,” he said.
“For me, dropping down a spot in terms of the draft board is nowhere near as important as the integrity of the way that you play and the great feeling you get of having a win and for your morale.
“That’s much more important than a draft positon.”
HAS SHOCK WIN COST NORTH GENERATIONAL TALENT?
North Melbourne has silenced doubters of its will to win, claiming a stunning 35-point win over Gold Coast to snap a 20-game losing streak and pass the wooden spoon back to the West Coast Eagles.
The Kangaroos conceded the opening three goals of Saturday’s match at Blundstone Arena, but stormed back into the contest with a matchwinning performance from Nick Larkey, who booted a career-high nine goals.
It the final game of his first season in charge, senior coach Alastair Clarkson helped engineer a masterclass in ball movement, which underpinned a six-goal third term that paved the way for the club’s third win and final win of the season.
Much speculation centred around whether the Kangaroos would ‘tank’ in the final round of the season and secure the number one pick in the upcoming draft, but instead the side showed a competitive edge rarely seen for the bulk of 2023.
Former North Melbourne summed up the attitude of player Cameron Mooney noted on Fox Footy in the second quarter: “You can throw tanking out the window.”
LARKEY LOOMS LARGE
Nick Larkey finished a superb season with a bang rather than a whimper, completing a year that has been extraordinarily impressive individually given his side’s struggles as a collective.
The 25-year-old had kicked four goals to halftime, taking his tally for the year to 66, before finishing the match with an equal career-high eight majors and 70 goals for the season.
It made Larkey the first Roo since Wayne Carey in 99 to boot at least 65 majors, made even more impressive by the side’s wretched win-loss record in 2023.
He had the measure of determined opponent Sam Collins in what was a fiery contest, with spotfires breaking out throughout the match.
If North Melbourne begins to surge up the ladder, there’s no telling what it could mean for Larkey’s already-fearsome output.
LADDER EQUATION TAKES EXTRAORDINARY TURN
North Melbourne’s win has seen the side move up to 17th on the ladder, with that to remain the case barring a second consecutive win from West Coast on Sunday.
Alastair Clarkson bristled during the week and pre-game on Saturday at suggestions the side wouldn’t do everything in its power to win given the number one pick would be in its possession with a 21st consecutive loss.
Should the Eagles lose to Adelaide on Sunday, the Kangaroos would be just the fourth team in the AFL era to avoid the wooden spoon with a win in the final round.
RISING SUN ADDS STRING TO BOW
On the verge of a contract call, Sam Flanders thrived early in his final game of the season, booting two goals to go with eight disposals in the opening quarter.
He has flourished with increased midfield minutes under caretaker coach Steven King and the 22-year-old could take his game to new heights under Damien Hardwick in 2024 and beyond.
When Hardwick insisted “eighty per cent of our first premiership side is sitting in this room right now” during his announcement as senior coach, Flanders once again proved why he falls squarely in that category.
KANGAROOS 2.3, 7.6, 13.7, 20.12 (132)
SUNS 4.2, 8.6, 10.9, 14.13 (97)
BEST Kangaroos: Larkey, Simpkin, Thomas, Scott, Ford, Sheezel
Suns: Flanders, Rowell, Fiorini, Anderson, Ellis
GOALS Kangaroos: Larkey 9, Ford 3, Tucker, Taylor, Simpkin, Howe, Greenwood, Curtis, Corr Suns: Rosas 3, Flanders 2, Chol 2, Casboult 2, Swallow, Miller, Fiorini
UMPIRES Dore, Wallace, Bailes, Jones
INJURIES Kangaroos: Taylor (leg). Suns: Nil.
ZITA’S VOTES
3. Nick Larkey (Kangaroos)
2. Jy Simpkin (Kangaroos)
1. Sam Flanders (Suns)
Originally published as North Melbourne vs. Gold Coast: Clarko suggests Kangaroos not bothered by losing no.1 draft pick
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