North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson's future is under fresh scrutiny after the Kangaroos' horror loss to Fremantle on the weekend, highlighted by an "alarming" aspect of their defending. Clarkson is contracted until the end of 2027 after joining the club on a five-year deal.
The Kangaroos have shown signs of improvement this season with five wins, including a stunning comeback to beat Gold Coast a fortnight ago. But their other victories were over fellow strugglers Port Adelaide, Essendon, Carlton and Richmond. They have also suffered heavy losses to Geelong (49 points), Adelaide (68) and then the Fremantle (124) debacle on the weekend. Once again, their defence has been questioned, having conceded 100 points in the past six-straight matches.
During Saturday's loss, the Dockers kicked an extraordinary 19 consecutive goals, one of which they were basically able to take the ball uncontested from end-to-end. Channel 7 expert Kane Cornes highlighted a pre-season interview from defender Charlie Comben that revealed they were changing their structures in year four of Clarkson's tenure.
"So that should help us get a lot of stability behind the ball and hopefully play a bit more footy in our front half so we're not getting scored on out the back as much," Comben said in January. Cornes "couldn't believe" it, as he highlighted the "catastrophic" situation against Fremantle.
"I couldn't believe this from Charlie Comben in January where he revealed that they'd changed, in year four, mind you, of Alastair Clarkson, their whole defensive set-up," he said on The Agenda Setters. "So instead of embedding your defensive system, you're changing it in year four. Now, everyone's seen this clip, but if this is the way that you want to defend, if that's your back shoulder, if that's your more man-on-man system, if that's your lack of pressing, then this is absolutely catastrophic. So not only the lack of any system, there's no front half footy the way that the game is played now. You've got players running through the middle with no pressure whatsoever. You've got uncontested marks on the goal line. That vision is alarming for everyone."
Channel 7's Caroline Wilson found it "extraordinary" that there was talk of Clarkson extending his contract into 2028 and beyond. "I found it extraordinary in the lead-up to the game there was all this talk about maybe North are talking about a contract extension," she said. "I was really surprised it was even a topic of conversation. I always felt that if Alastair did see out his contract, it would be a five-year agreement and he would be getting the club ready for a top-four tilt. Now, they're nowhere near that at the moment and we're sitting here tonight talking when you've got two former premiership players and premiership coaches not coaching at the moment and in fact in the market for other coaching jobs elsewhere in John Longmire and notably Adam Simpson."
Wilson believes Clarkson isn't the "right fit" moving forward, but wonders if the club can afford to pay him out. "You don't just pay out coaches willy-nilly. I don't know the intricacies of Alastair's deal, but we know he's a million-dollar coach. And I don't think there's an out clause," she continued. "Now, does that mean that North Melbourne, who are not the richest club going around, in fact, they're one of the poorest, they have to sell games like this one to Bunbury and next week to Optus because they don't get free-to-air footy. I don't see them being in a position to pay Alistair Clarkson a million dollars."
However, she did raise the prospect of an "amicable" exit in the future. "If this continues, I predict an amicable, negotiated exit," she said. Nick Riewoldt added: "I just feel like, time and again, when it looks like they're there, when they fall short, we get the excuse narrative coming out of North Melbourne."
