- Alastair Clarkson has opened up on how North Melbourne once supported him
- The footy great has spoken out on leading the Kangaroos back to success
Footy coach Alastair Clarkson has opened up on how North Melbourne supported him through a dark period during his life.
The Kangaroos boss opened up in an interview with 7News on how the footy club supported him and provided him with some ‘stability’ after his brother tragically passed away when he was a teenager.
Clarkson then compared the situation to how the club ‘were in a bit of a pickle’ before he took over in 2023, and how he returned to provide some ‘stability’ back to the footy club during one of their tougher periods.
‘It wasn’t too dissimilar to the challenge I was confronted with when I was 16-17 years of age when I lost a brother to a car accident, and I just needed some stability in my life, and this club gave it to me,’ Clarkson said to 7NEWS.
‘Fast track 30 years, and this club was the one that was in a bit of trouble, and I could provide it with a little bit of stability.’
Clarkson is hoping to give back to the club again, with the footy coach opening up on their chances of taking the Roos back to the top of the AFL.
Alastair Clarkson has opened up on how North Melbourne supported him during a family tragedy
Clarkson said the club had provided him with ‘stability’ when his brother died when he was a teenager
‘I’m hoping that we’re on the right track to be able to bring this club its third successful era,’ he added.
Clarkson, who hails from the rural town of Kaniva in Victoria, made his debut for the North Melbourne Football Club in the VFL back in 1987.
The 56-year-old would go on to boot 61 goals across 93 appearances for the club, leaving in 1995 to join up with the Demons.
Clarkson would go on to retire two years later and pursued a career in coaching, joining up with St Kilda as an assistant coach before taking charge of Werribee in the VFL, before going on to manage Central District in the SANFL, before taking charge of Hawthorn.
Clarkson seems determined to lead the Roos back to their former glory, with the club having won two VFL premierships in the 70s and two AFL titles in the 90s.
Though Clarkson would never win a Grand Final with the Blue and Whites, he is gunning to now win one as a coach and is taking motivation from the journey that his friend Chris Fagan has been on with Brisbane.
‘Yeah, it’s pretty special,’ Clarkson said when reflecting on the Lions’ premiership victory in 2024.
Clarkson has since provided some stability to the Roos following their slump prior to 2023, and is gunning to guide the club back to success
‘Special because of the connection I’ve got with Fages, but special because of the journey that Brisbane went on and the journey that we’re on here at North Melbourne.
‘It was just validation that the path that we’re on at North is just really the same path as what Brisbane started.
‘It gives you the best chance of being able to lift silverware at the end of the day.
‘It’s no guarantee, but it gives you the best chance, not just have maybe one chance of winning it, but maybe you get a chance of winning a couple in that era.
