Alastair Thomas Clarkson (born 27 April 1968[1]) is an Australian rules football coach and former player.

[7][8] Clarkson was 19 and at the end of his first season with North Melbourne when the Kangaroos met Carlton in October 1987 in the controversial "Battle of Britain", an exhibition match at The Oval in London.

Several players from both teams were suspended after a spiteful game, with Clarkson receiving a four-match penalty for coward punching Ian Aitken from behind being the longest.

[14] Another round of culling saw the delisting of Angelo Lekkas and Nick Holland and the trade of Jonathan Hay and Nathan Lonie.

Clarkson brought to the club delisted players Brent Guerra and Stephen Gilham whom he knew from his time at Port Adelaide.

[14] Clarkson went against his own policy on draft day 2007 when, in addition to youngster Cyril Rioli, he recruited the recently retired Stuart Dew, whom he also knew from his time at Port Adelaide.

Dogged by injuries to key players, the Hawks under Clarkson slipped down the ladder to finish ninth at the end of the 2009 season and therefore just missed out of the finals.

Aided by recruiting established players to cover weaknesses, the club under Clarkson climbed its way back up the ladder and finished seventh on the ladder at the end of the 2010 season, therefore making the finals, but the Hawks under Clarkson were eliminated by Fremantle in the first week of the 2010 elimination final.

[14][18] Clarkson's additions of players with Shaun Burgoyne and Josh Gibson who arrived in 2010, David Hale in 2011, Jack Gunston in 2012 and Brian Lake in 2013, had a significant impact on the club.

The IRS is a hybrid game played between an Australian team of AFL players and one made up of Irish Gaelic footballers at the end of each of their seasons.

[14] In the 2017 season, Hawthorn under Clarkson fell back with the club's on-field performance and finished twelve on the ladder, therefore missing out of the finals.

[14] In the 2018 season, The Hawks under Clarkson returned to the finals when they finished fourth on the ladder, but were eliminated by Melbourne in the semi-final.

[26][27][28] However, on 30 July 2021, it was announced that Clarkson would leave Hawthorn at the conclusion of the 2021 AFL season, with Mitchell immediately succeeding him.

[35][36][37][38] In May 2023, just before the start of Round 10, Clarkson announced that he would step away from his role as North Melbourne senior coach indefinitely, citing mental health as a result of the investigation into alleged historical racism during his time at Hawthorn.

Team Individual In addition to his role in the Battle of Britain exhibition match, Clarkson has been sanctioned for his bad temper on several occasions during his coaching career.

The incident occurred one day after he had punched a hole in the wall of a Melbourne Cricket Ground coaches' box during an AFL match.

[44] In May 2013, Clarkson again created controversy after calling AFL Media journalist Matt Thompson a "cockhead".

Unlike his previous incidents, Clarkson received almost unanimous support within the football industry, as well as from the general public over his actions.

[47] In May 2024, Clarkson was investigated for, and ultimately cleared of, verbally abusing umpires during North Melbourne's loss to Port Adelaide.

[48] Clarkson holds a Master of Business Administration from Monash University, and also a Bachelor of Sports Science.