September 5, 2026 — 5:27pmSacked coach Alastair Clarkson has been urged to bury his grievances and return to the fold at Hawthorn following his shock mid-week axing by North Melbourne.The four-time premiership coach was left “blindsided” by the Kangaroos’ decision during the week to end his contract with a year left to run, amid claims he was no longer the “right coach” to take them forward.Alastair Clarkson and Hawthorn’s Luke Hodge hold the 2015 premiership cup. Clarkson coached the Hawks to four flags.Scott BarbourClarkson told The Age’s Caroline Wilson in a bombshell interview on Friday that his family thought they were “owed a little bit of respect in being informed and warned”.“Instead, they chose to dance on my grave like this,” Clarkson said.North Melbourne and president Sonja Hood declined on Saturday to respond to Clarkson’s comments.The Kangaroos said they had already given their reasons for cutting ties with Clarkson during the week, which included accusations of drawn out meetings and unclear messaging.Australian Football Hall of Fame Legend and four-time premiership Hawk Leigh Matthews described North Melbourne’s midweek press conference as “nasty” and “harsh”.“Not only did they show him the door, they kicked him in the arse on the way out,” Matthews told 3AW.“They had to be harsh, I think, and blunt, in a sense, to justify it,” Matthews said. “They took the heat for being [like] that. And Clarko, unfortunately – his reputation and his whole self-esteem has taken a hit.”Two-time premiership Kangaroo Adam Simpson and former Hawthorn president Jeff Kennett both said it was time for Clarkson to rejoin the Hawks – the club he led to four premierships in an eight-year stretch before being replaced by Sam Mitchell during a botched succession plan in 2022.Adam Simpson and Alastair Clarkson ahead of the 2015 AFL grand final between West Coast and Hawthorn.Michael DodgeClarkson fell out with Hawthorn during their racism scandal, criticising the club for denying him procedural fairness. He always denied the allegations and was exonerated.In what became his final season as Hawthorn coach, Clarkson approached then-CEO Justin Reeves and then-president Kennett in mid-2021, asking if the club intended to renew his contract. He was told that they would not do so. This led to the messy coaching handover to Mitchell, his 2008 premiership captain, for 2022.“He’s been a football identity at many clubs, but his greatest success clearly came at Hawthorn,” Kennett told The Age. “He would always be welcome there as a favourite son.“I hope he accepts the warmth the club extends to him in the same way that I’m sure the North Melbourne fraternity will always see him as a coach of North Melbourne. Success is not always judged by the number of premierships you win.”Simpson said Clarkson took on a job four years ago at North Melbourne that no one else wanted – “they couldn’t find anyone” – and despite his axing, left the club in a better place.The Kangaroos had their best season under Clarkson this year, registering nine wins before a late-season dip.“To get the club to a spot now where everyone wants to coach North, you know, it looks like a really exciting role coming up, I think it’s been a bit of a win for the club,” Simpson, the 2018 West Coast premiership coach who has been linked with the Roos’ now vacant role, told SEN.“Maybe expectations were that Clarko was going to take North from zero to 100, but he’s gone from zero to 60 probably in the journey.“I think now whatever happens next for North is positive, and for Clarko not to be part of that, that’s the disappointing piece.”Simpson said the axing would still be raw for Clarkson, but hoped he would find “a home in terms of a club and a purpose”.“I think it’s just going to take a little bit of time to get that perspective,” Simpson said. “And the fact maybe the Hawthorn relationship’s not great ... like there’s a sense of loss too. Like, where’s his belonging?“You hope it’s Hawthorn. You think it’s going to be Hawthorn down the track, but that probably hasn’t fully mended itself, from what I’m hearing.”Jeff Kennett and Clarkson in 2012.AFL PhotosClarkson stepped away from North Melbourne early in his tenure, in May 2023, because of the emotional toll the racism investigation was taking on his mental health. He resumed in round 21 that year.“That was a challenge that was unexpected ... we didn’t see the best of Clarko because of what he had to deal with,” Simpson said. “He had to step away for a year.”Kennett said Hawthorn had reached out to Clarkson on many occasions.Fremantle assistant Jaymie Graham.AFL Photos“He has focused on his employment at North Melbourne for the last few years, which is understandable,” Kennett said.“Whatever differences [there are], whatever positives occurred in the future, he would always be welcome back at Hawthorn.“I’m not so sure that he left Hawthorn in the psychological sense. He left Hawthorn physically, because he was employed elsewhere.“But in the same way that we have Leigh Matthews, who did well with us, went elsewhere and came back, the same way with Luke Hodge and [Lance] Franklin, they’re all part of our family, and they’ll always be that way.”The potential contenders have started to emerge for the North coaching role, with neither Jaymie Graham (the highly rated Fremantle assistant) nor James Rahilly (Geelong) ruling themselves out of entering the process.“We will see how that plays out, I’m focused on the Cats,” Rahilly told Kayo Sports before Friday night’s elimination final win over Carlton.Speaking on 3AW on Thursday night, Graham, who impressed both Carlton and Essendon in their recent coaching search processes, said: “If there is an opportunity to talk to someone I will consider it, but at the moment I am solely focused on my job.“It was a busy month. I really grew from it through the processes.“It was a great opportunity for me. Unfortunately I wasn’t successful, but I really learned and have grown some confidence by going through it.“It’s pretty well known I want to coach at some point, if the opportunity arises.”With AAP‘Holes in the list’: Blues identify targets ahead of draft and trade periodsDanny RussellCarlton will begin searching for a key forward, a running defender and a next-generation midfielder as they overcome the disappointment of Friday night’s elimination final loss to Geelong and look ahead to next season.The Blues have been linked to Sydney star Joel Amartey and Western Bulldogs defender Buku Khamis following a year in which they turned a 1-8 disaster into a finals appearance under interim coach Josh Fraser.Carlton midfielder George Hewett gets handball away against Geelong.Getty ImagesTheir fairytale turnaround that followed Michael Voss’ departure came to a brutal end against the well-drilled Cats at the MCG, a 33-point loss that exposed a number of holes in Carlton’s list.Big-bodied midfielder George Hewett said the Blues lost crucial contests as they struggled to adapt to the wet conditions.He said there were mixed emotions when Fraser addressed the group after Friday night’s loss as they were proud of their season but had wanted to advance further into the finals.“We need to get better. The competition is telling us we’re eighth on the ladder for a reason,” Hewett told this masthead.“Maybe we just didn’t win enough games early in the season to give us that cushion of a top-four spot.“We’ve got a blueprint that we know can beat top teams and all that comes through effort and teamwork, so we have got to work on that.”Carlton managed just 11 goals against the Cats while conceding over 100 points in a match dominated by Geelong veterans Tom Stewart and Patrick Dangerfield.The Blues also lacked variety through the midfield after Cats tagger Oisin Mullin closed down young gun Jagga Smith, and his teammate Mark O’Connor shadowed Carlton captain Patrick Cripps.Jagga Smith was brilliant early until copping the dreaded Oisin Mullin tag.Getty ImagesCarlton football boss Chris Davies said on Saturday the loss highlighted “some things that we need to work on from a list perspective”.“We’re going to be having a crack through the free agency period,” Davies told SEN.“I think it’s probably more important for us to attack the draft, but at the same time, we’ll look at anyway through the next period of time to try and improve our list.“I think we’d like an extra, probably a key forward into the future. We definitely have to look for our next group of midfielders, post Patrick Cripps and George Hewett, but I think overall I’d also like some more run out of the backline. So we’ve got some holes to fill.”Hewett backed rising star Smith to bounce back after being shutdown by Mullins.The 20-year-old midfielder had nine possessions in the opening term as Carlton kicked away to a 16-point lead before being restricted to just 12 disposals across the next three quarters as Geelong ran rampant.“Jagga’s going have a great future, so he’ll learn from it,” Hewett said of his inexperienced teammate.“The positive is when he is getting sat on, we’ve got a few others in there that can do some damage. But, yeah, he’ll be better for it.”The Blues also lost shape in their back half when first-year key defender Harry Dean copped a heavy knock to the nose during a marking contest and had to sit out the second quarter after a head injury assessment.But Hewett said the Blues could expect further improvement next year under Fraser, who was appointed full-time last month.“We know what a good man he is, what his philosophies are as a coach, what he stands for, and I think us as a group have responded well to it,” Hewett said. “So we know what we need to do to get better.”Keep up to date with the best AFL coverage in the country. Sign up for the Real Footy newsletter.More:AFL 2026Alastair ClarksonHawthorn HawksNorth Melbourne KangaroosCarlton BluesAFL off-field behaviourFrom our partners