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0 Matthew Lloyd is calling on the AFL to “properly” investigate and punish North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson’s alleged use of vile language during round 11.
Meantime, Eddie McGuire believes the alleged act, if found to have occurred, should incur a minimum suspension of five weeks.
9News Melbourne’s Tom Morris revealed Clarkson used vile language in a manner which was heard by those on and around the umpires bench during North’s loss to Port Adelaide.
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The AFL investigation will determine whether he directed it towards the umpires.
North Melbourne declined to comment until after the investigation has taken place. Morris confirmed it could take a couple of days to have an outcome.
Alastair Clarkson is under investigation for the second time in 2024. AFL Photos via Getty Images
If found guilty, Clarkson is reportedly facing at least a two-week suspension.
That two-week ban is a suspended sentence that was handed to Clarkson on the eve of the 2024 season.
Clarkson verbally attacked a number of St Kilda players in the aftermath of Jimmy Webster levelling Kangaroos captain Jye Simpkin during a practice game in February. He used a homophobic slur in his rant.
He was slapped with a two-match wholly suspended sanction alongside a $20,000 fine for that incident.
Now, Lloyd is calling for the league to act, demanding that Clarkson’s examination be taken seriously.
“At least two (weeks). I just hope that the investigation is done thoroughly and properly,” Lloyd said on Nine’s Footy Classified on Wednesday night.
“It’s not just a case of ‘oh, I was just saying this into the air, because I was frustrated with how the game was going’ and ‘that’s OK, we’ll let Alastair off again’.
“I want this done properly, even if it takes two, three, four, five days, because they have the bye this week.”
Alastair Clarkson. Getty
Lloyd is convinced that the league wouldn’t even hesitate to punish a “lesser name” more harshly if they were the ones to allegedly make Clarkson’s comment.
“Because I think if it was a lesser name, or a lesser person, I think we’d be coming down a lot harder,” Lloyd said.
McGuire wants an even harsher penalty, based on the way the AFL has been handling umpire abuse and homophobic slurs in 2024. Players Jeremy Finlayson and Wil Powell have both copped long suspensions this year for using homophobic language.
“If he’s said those words at an official or an umpire, I think it’s five plus weeks,” McGuire said.
“I think they’ll throw the book at him.
“The AFL have made it very clear, ‘we’re going to graduate this up until people actually start to understand that this is unacceptable’.”
Jimmy Bartel echoed the calls from both McGuire and Lloyd.
“You’ve got to be better at controlling your emotions. We talk about coaches who lose it on the bench,” he said.
“So that’s two (weeks), plus probably two more.”
Leading AFL journalist Damien Barrett launched a scathing attack on Clarkson’s antics since joining North Melbourne at the start of 2023.
“Yet again, this football club, North Melbourne, is now mopping up a problem that Alastair Clarkson has caused,” Barrett said.
“He is a resource drain and has been for a lot of the short time he’s been back at the club.”
Clarkson took indefinite leave in mid-May of 2023 during the Hawthorn racism scandal, leaving the Kangaroos waiting for his return.
When he did come back in round 21, he managed to snag one final win to close out the year with a 3-20 record.
But Barrett isn’t satisfied that his limited wins in 2023, coupled with his winless start to 2024, is any excuse to keep him around the club.
“They have won three matches since his return,” he said.
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“He’s caused as many problems in this space, as wins under his watch.”
The AFL is yet to make a formal call on Clarkson’s potential punishment. It will depend on the findings of the investigation.
