Alastair Clarkson will coach North Melbourne in 2023, beating out Essendon for the four-time premiership boss’ signature.
The Kangaroos on Friday morning confirmed the super coach would join the club on a five-year deal, putting an end to week-long speculation around his much-anticipated decision.
Clarkson addressed the media on Friday afternoon.
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“There was sentiment with Essendon, and I’ve got enormous respect for GWS, but this just felt right. I feel comfortable here. It was a difficult position to be in, and I was aware it was becoming a circus. I don’t like being the center of attention,” he said.
Clarkson said the approach from Essendon came “far too late” to seriously consider.
“We were so far down the road with North and GWS, the Essendon process came far too late to give it serious consideration.
“It was really out of respect that I listened to what they had to say. Due diligence takes a lot longer than four days, for me.”
In a letter to members, president Sonja Hood described the coup as a “real watershed moment for our club”.
“I’m delighted to announce that last night Alastair Clarkson agreed to coach the North Melbourne Football Club for the next five seasons, Hood said.
“Our former number 23, Shinboner #781, and four-time premiership coach will lead our talented, young group from 2023 until at least 2027.
“This is a real watershed moment for our club. I am writing to share it with members and supporters first… this is a moment for all of us.
“Today is a good day. Alastair’s coming home. To our home.”
Hood praised Clarkson and his manager James Henderson for how they handled the delicate negotiations.
“I can’t speak highly enough of the professionalism of Alastair and his manager James Henderson over these past four weeks. We’ve had a crash course in getting to know each other and Alastair’s passion to drive our club back to where we belong is incredibly infectious,” she wrote.
Clarkson will officially take over the reins from November 1.
It means Bomber’s coach Ben Rutten will likely coach the team on the weekend. There is now the real prospect that he could coach in 2023 despite the club actively seeking to replace him
New Bombers president David Barham, meanwhile, will on Friday morning meet with the players before facing the media.
Rutten’s manager Adam Ramanauskas said the whole episode had been handled poorly.
“I think it’s been really disappointing. You’ve got to look at the human side … the way he’s been treated is fundamentally not right,” Ramanauskas said on RSN radio.
“….It’s fair to say Monday and half of Tuesday were pretty difficult days because nobody was telling him what was going on. He was calling a lot of people and wasn’t getting much response back.”
Clarkson broke his silence on the coaching saga on Thursday and labeled the situation “embarrassing”.
“It’s quite embarrassing to be fair to be quite the central figure in all this,” Clarkson told Channel 10 on Thursday night.
“You know, I’ve got enormous respect for the three guys involved in their clubs, you know Spike McVeigh, Truck Rutten and Patch Adams are all terrific people and they’re trying to do the right things by their clubs.
“In particular with the situation around Truck, you know he’s still got a year of his contract to run and it’s quite embarrassing being the center of attention in a situation it’s just so difficult for both him and his club.
“I’d prefer to be able to get off the back page and I know full well that this circus will end once I can make a decision one way or another. “So the sooner I can do that the better.”
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