• North have sacked Clarkson
• The club will hold a 2pm AEST press conference (scroll down for live)
• Listen live to reaction here
• Potential candidates

North Melbourne have sacked head coach Alastair Clarkson.

After four seasons at the helm at the Kangaroos, the board opted to part ways with the four-time premiership coach at the conclusion of the 2026 season, having won just nine games and missing finals once more.

Joining the Roos in 2023, Clarkson won just 20 of his 82 games in charge, dragging North Melbourne through their rebuild before guiding the club to their best record since 2019.

The coach joined the club after a one-year absence from head coaching, having handed over the reigns to Sam Mitchell at Hawthorn after a legendary spell across the 2010's.

In 2008, Clarkson won his first premiership as Hawthorn coach, before guiding his side to a three-peat from 2012 to 2014.

On Wednesday morning, players and staff at North Melbourne were called into an emergency meeting at Arden Street, within which club officials made it known that Clarkson had been sacked from his role of head coach.

Clarkson was under pressure over the course of the 2026 season, and the shock decision has been made to move him on a year from his contract expiration.

This marks the third sacking of 2026, following Michael Voss at Carlton, and Brad Scott at Essendon.

NORTH PRESSER: Sonja Hood and Todd Viney taking questions:

Why is he not the right man?

Todd Viney: "There are still gaping holes in game play and key metrics that we haven't been able arrest. If there was one thing that Clarko did, it was that he tried too hard. Then we get into more meeting's and we don't get the cohesion we need. There was no lack of belief."

Sonja Hood: "In the middle of the year, we made it clear that we would talk about Alastair’s contract at the end of the year. We did a fair amount of listening inside the club and a fair amount of data collection. It became clear during hat process that we wouldn’t be extending him at the end of 2027, and therefore it would be unfair to continue with him into next year knowing that."

How are the players?

Hood: "They're sad but excited for the future. The decision we have made today is about the next four years. There is not enough belief among key people he is the right person to drive that."

Did he know the conversations are happening?

Hood: "He is upset but he has been around football long enough to know what happens in the last year of a contract."

How is your relationship with Clarko?

Viney: "When times are tough you have to make hard decisions and it's difficult. We have a family connection and it's tremendously stressful. I know Alastair and he found this hard, he is a fighter. The Hawthorn stuff took an enormous toll on him and I'm not sure the scars are healed. But we need a new voice."

Viney: "It will take time for the smoke to settle and things to get back to normal. We have spoken about making a jump in the footy this year, we won nine, we were in contention for wildcard. There's parts of our gameplan we haven't improved in four years and that's what we have to get right talking to the next coach."

Will you pay out his full contract?

Hood: "We have a termination clause in Alastair’s contract, and we’ve met that obligation completely."

Would he have coached on without an extension?

Hood: "He was prepared to go into next year without his contract adjusted."

Is your position tenable (Hood)

Hood: "He was the right person I don't resile form that. He has done an important job. It's for others to decide what happens from here with my leadership. In the end my job is to make the best decisions in the interests of the club."

How did Clarko take the news?

Viney: "Sonja and I met with Alastair yesterday and he was surprised with the conversation, he did not see it coming."

Do you have an idea on who comes in next?

Hood: "We don't have a presupposed idea, our list is in a different decision and we will let the market put up the best person for this job. We will be looking for the best person. Finals next year is my hope. We need a coach that can coach for the modern game."

What did Clarko do wrong?

Viney: "We rightly believe he is an effective coach and he is. We didn't make enough strides in areas of the game to support that. The game is changing at a rapid rate; we try to keep up to speed with that. Parts of our game haven't and it's holding us back."

Viney: "Clarko is full on, he is fully invested. Form the middle of the year when things started to ramp up from a contract point of view, the work load went up and he had a point to prove. The game is too big for one person to do it. he took the extra load on himself and didn't delegate as well as he could have. When you try and do too much you don't get a clear direction."

How did the Hawthorn scandal impact Clarko?

Viney: "He has been through a lot, he managed it well and coached well but it had an effect. he's not the same bubbly person I knew in the early days."

NORTH PRESSER: Kangaroos president Dr Sonja Hood is reading the following

Today we announced that we have parted ways with senior coach, Alastair Clarkson.

In 2022 we overtly targeted Alastair Clarkson as our senior coach. Quite simply, he was the best coach available, and the best coach for our club at that time.

I don’t need to back over any of that. Rather than describing the club as it was, let me point to the club as it is now – stable, strong, aligned and full of excellent people.

North Melbourne is a place people want to come to and want to stay at.

Alastair, along with Todd Viney and Jen Watt and their teams, has been a key part of the rebuilding of our club, on and off the field.

Alastair's strength and knowledge gave us the time and the space to make changes we needed to make, and to lay the foundations for the club we are now. We will always be grateful for this.

But now, having consulted widely across the club, it has become clear that Alastair no longer has the belief from enough people at the club that he is the right coach to take this group forward.

Once we knew that, it felt disrespectful to him to have him coach into 2027, knowing we would not extend him at the end of that.

Our culture among the players, staff and coaches is undeniably strong, but we need a consistently clear and concise on-field strategy to sit alongside that.

We have made progress and won more games but we won't shy away from our desire to want more from this talented group. This is unashamedly a football decision.

Make no mistake - our next piece of silverware will have his fingerprints all over it. And regardless of how they might feel right at this moment, Alastair and his family will always belong to this club.

So where to now?

From here, Jen, Todd and our Board will move swiftly to form a process to find our next senior AFL coach.

I have said this many times before – the fundamentals of the club are as sound as they have ever been. We have a young and exciting list, our financials are as strong, we have a full book of incredible sponsors, and we have the best and most loyal supporters in the country.

This will be a highly sought-after job.

Just as Alastair was the man for the times four years ago, we’re confident we’ll find the right person to take us forward again.

CLARKSON STATEMENT

"My time as coach of the North Melbourne Football Club has come to an end.

"We set out to stabilise the club and lay the foundations for a return to playing deep in September.

"The challenge was a difficult one that I embraced with my whole being.

"My family and I have been privileged to be involved in AFL football for over 40 years, but it is now time for a new chapter."

NORTH CONFIRM SACKING

A club statement said: The North Melbourne Football Club has decided to part ways with senior coach Alastair Clarkson.

The club informed Clarkson of its position on Tuesday following a consultation period with football department staff and players at the conclusion of the AFL premiership season.

“We asked Alastair to give our club stability and strength and help return us to the top of the AFL ladder,” Club President Dr Sonja Hood AM said.

“Four years later, we have created an environment where our staff and players want to be at our club. This is a testament to the culture Alastair has helped create and the belief that he has built in this group.

“Although we have clearly made progress and won more games, we won't shy away from our desire to want more from this talented group.

“We are incredibly grateful to Alastair for the work he’s done over the last four years and we wish him all the very best for his next chapter.”*

The club will now undertake a process to appoint our next senior coach.

Club president Dr Sonja Hood AM and general manager of football Todd Viney will speak at a press conference at 2pm AEST.

PRESSER AT 2pm

Latest from Sam Edmmund

"I spoke to some players – they said they didn’t know why they were there but they had suspicions.

"Sonja Hood addressed the group and told them Clarkson had been sacked. This is a sacking not a resignation. He is gone four years into a five year deal.

"Not the improvement the club wanted and now they begin the search for a new coach.

"It is sacked. The board agreed he should not continue as coach, this is a club led decision. They have been transparent about not being rushed into contract extension. Clarko was one of five coaches going into the final year of their contract.

"Not any more, he will not see out the five years."

SACKED NOT RESIGN

Tom Morris confirms: "Todd Viney and Sonja Hood spoke to the players in this meeting.

"Confirmation Clarkson was sacked, rather than a resignation or parting of ways."

FIREBALL POD?

Yes, for everyone asking, Kane and Kingy are gearing up for an emergency podcast. Looking like 2pm AEST

11:51am LIVE FROM ARDEN ST

Tom Morris calling SEN just now from the club, here's what he had to say.

"Players were called to a meeting at 11:45 this morning. I'm not sure if Clarko is on this call and we’re waiting to hear if it’s sacked, resigned or parting ways.

"Am I surprised? Last week I would have said yes, but now, not so surprised. It is reality that he would have liked an extension but it was a conversation the club was not willing to open.

"North had not been all in on Clarko for a while now. I don’t know if Clarko himself had read the tea leaves or if he is blindsided.

"What the players are told will prove pretty telling."