North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson has stepped away from the club indefinitely to focus on his mental health amid the investigation into racial issues during his time at Hawthorn.
An announcement was made by the Kangaroos on Thursday morning after news of Clarkson's decision leaked to the media.
Alastair Clarkson news - McLachlan, Fagan and Viney statements
Outgoing CEO Gillon McLachlan said the AFL "supports the decision" made by the North Melbourne coach to take some personal time, saying the ongoing investigation has taken its toll.
"We support the decision by North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson to take the step today to prioritise his own health and wellbeing," McLachlan said.
"We understand how much the investigation by the independent panel into allegations of racism has impacted on all people involved, including Alastair, and believe the investigation needs to find resolution.
"It is a heavy burden being carried by all parties involved and the wellbeing of everyone who is a part of this process is the key priority for our game.
It takes great courage to stand up and say you need to focus on your own personal wellbeing and we support Alastair in doing what he needs to do in the best interests of himself and his family. We will continue to provide support to all parties.
"The AFL supports current efforts to find a mediated outcome that provides fairness and natural justice for all involved and encourage all parties to work towards a timely and just outcome."
Friend and Brisbane coach Chris Fagan - who is also involved in the ongoing investigation - released a statement sharing how "saddened" he was to learn that Clarkson was stepping down from his post.
"I am saddened by the decision of my friend and colleague Alastair Clarkson to step away from his role at North Melbourne indefinitely," Fagan said,
"I was fortunate to work with Clarko for almost nine years, and I have known him for much longer than this. I know him to be a person of very good character who has had an overwhelmingly positive influence on the lives of the young men he has coached. The football community is immeasurably better off with Clarko in it.
"The deeply flawed process that we have been subjected to has taken a heavy toll. It has been profoundly damaging and unfair. It is my hope that it will very soon come to an appropriate end. In the meantime, Clarko's physical and mental wellbeing must come first. I extend my very best wishes to him, Caryn and his family."
North Melbourne Football boss Todd Viney spoke on the champion coach's choice to remove himself, saying he has been struggling for some time.
"He felt that he just couldn't do it anymore," Viney said.
"There's been no timeframe to talk about when he's coming back. It's our firm belief that he will be back this year.
"We've spoken with the players today ... they are feeling for their coach. Their number one priority is to make sure he knows he's got their support and they just want him to get better.
"It took me by surprise to tell you the truth ... the mask he'd been putting on was so clever. He was hiding all of it from us internally.
"This (investigation) was supposed to be finished up before Christmas. Here we are, still dealing with it. People's wellbeing and health have been affected by it. So lets get together and work it out and get it done."
The Sporting News analyses the long-running saga with one the game's greatest coaches.
Why has Alastair Clarkson stepped away from the game?
MORE: Alastair Clarkson refutes serious allegations: "I was not afforded any due process"
Kangaroos leader Clarkson has temporarily walked away from the AFL, with the club stating the 55-year-old has made the decision to "focus on his physical and emotional wellbeing".
Clarkson is currently a part of an AFL investigation into alleged racism issues that occurred at his previous club Hawthorn, where he won four premierships as coach during a stint from 2005-2021.
Quotes from North Melbourne president Dr Sonja Hood in the statement (featured below) about Clarkson's leave specifically mention the 'burden' caused on everyone involved with the Hawthorn investigation.
Clarkson has recently been critical of the process of the AFL's investigation into the alleged incidents.
He has also been involved in several incidents this season, including apologising for threatening a reporter, while he has been vocal about umpires in recent press conferences.
In their first season with Clarkson at the helm, North Melbourne have won two of their nine matches and sit in 16th on the AFL ladder.
When will Alastair Clarkson return to North Melbourne?
No time frame has been mentioned on when Clarkson could return as coach of the Kangaroos.
It is likely he won't return to the game until at least after the completion of the AFL's Hawthorn investigation.
Who will coach North Melbourne in Clarkson's absence?
Former St Kilda and Carlton mentor Brett Ratten will step up from his usual assistant coach role and take the coaching reins at North Melbourne on an interim basis until Clarkson returns.
Ratten has coached 188 games at AFL level previously, with 120 at Carlton from 2007-12 and 68 at St Kilda from 2019-22.
The 1995 Carlton premiership player was surprisingly sacked as coach of St Kilda in the recent off-season, allowing the Saints to appoint Ross Lyon.
He has also previously worked as an assistant to Clarkson at Hawthorn between 2013 and 2018.
What did North Melbourne say about Clarkson's leave?
North Melbourne released the following statement, including quotes from their president Dr Sonja Hood:
Effective immediately, North Melbourne Football Club senior coach Alastair Clarkson will step away from the club to focus on his physical and emotional wellbeing.
Current club assistant coach and former AFL senior coach, Brett Ratten, will take on the role of senior coach in the interim.
"The club is providing its full support to Alastair and we commend him for making this important decision to put his health first," Hood said.
"Everyone involved has been deeply affected by the Hawthorn investigation and the burden on Alastair has been significant.
"We will give Alastair whatever time he needs to restore his health and look forward to welcoming him back when he is fully fit.
"We have strong leaders at our club who will step up and support and coach our team while Alastair spends time focusing on his health.
"We are fortunate to have someone of Brett Ratten’s experience and capability to coach the team in the interim."
The club asks that the media respects the privacy of Alastair and his family during this time.
What are the historical racism allegations levelled at Hawthorn?
MORE: Chris Fagan to step away from Brisbane job during investigation into Hawthorn racism allegations
On September 20, 2022, it emerged former Indigenous footballers that had played at Hawthorn were alleging mistreatment of themselves and their families.
It is alleged several incidents occurred at the Hawks between 2008-16, including an encouragement to a player's family to terminate a pregnancy and also the repeated isolation of Indigenous players from their families.
Clarkson was senior coach at Hawthorn during his period, while current Brisbane Lions coach Chris Fagan was also at the club as head of football.
Both coaches and former player development manager Jason Burt are part of the AFL's investigation.
What is happening with the AFL's investigation into racism at Hawthorn?
MORE: AFL confirms investigation into Hawthorn racism allegations
The investigation into allegations of historical racism at Hawthorn is currently ongoing.
Clarkson, Fagan and Burt have all denied culpability since the AFL announced an investigation on September 21, 2022 - a day after the racism allegations were made public.
With the investigation yet to be completed, Clarkson criticised the credibility of the process during a press conference last week, with the author of the original report into the allegations, Phil Egan, being arrested on unrelated fraud charges.
"Why wouldn’t [my trust in the process be damaged], when the guy who’s heading up the actual process actually violates the very confidentiality that he said we should all abide by, how can we trust that process is going to be fair, and it hasn’t been for the whole eight months," Clarkson said.
"It‘s just extraordinary that we waited eight months ... the game is the victim of this, the game is shamed, obviously myself, Fages, Jase and our families have been shamed ... the Indigenous and First Nations families, they’ve been shamed."
MORE: Hawthorn and the AFL respond to shocking allegations following racism review
Clarkson also levelled his own accusations at the Hawthorn Football Club and claimed the investigation procedure had been unfair on all.
"There‘s one particular party out there that was the catalyst for all this, that haven’t been investigated at all - their governance and conduct in this whole thing, the Hawthorn Football Club, just shameful," Clarkson said.
"Let‘s do an investigation on them and their practices and see how they go.
"All these events ... just makes it a circus, someone just needs to cut through it all and take ownership of the whole process, whether that‘s from within the Hawthorn Football Club or the AFL.
"We‘re just waiting around like we have for the last eight months to see where it goes next ... bit intriguing that the guy who actually establishes the protocol around confidentiality actually breaches it yesterday.
"We‘re just waiting for the opportunity and the platform to be able to tell our side of the story, and when we get that, Fages, myself and Jase (Burt) right from the get go have been willing to co-operate and be involved in this investigation, but eight months later we still haven’t heard when or how it’s all going to unfold.
"What‘s the point arguing about it ... the damage is done and the reputations have been scarred, and we’ve got to somehow just claw our reputations back through this whole process, and all we want is a fair platform to be able to do that.
"The procedural fairness offered to myself, Fages and Jason has been next to zero, and that‘s particularly frustrating."
