Clarko blames racism saga for vile language outburst

North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson has blamed the ongoing pressure of the Hawthorn racism saga as to why he had an outburst during the side’s round 11 loss.

Clarkson used vile language during that match during the clash with Port Adelaide, which was first thought to be directed at the umpires, but he was later found not guilty.

While there was no doubt the four-time premiership coached used the words “f—ing c—” during the match, the league could not verify who it was directed at.

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Clarkson was remorseful for his actions and has vowed to coach from inside the box and not the bench, for the rest of the season.

Now, Clarkson has sought to clarify exactly why he had an outburst, admitting he has been struggling to deal with the affects of the ongoing Hawthorn saga.

It comes after Caroline Wilson told Footy Classified the Hawks offer to six individuals of up to $300,000 to settle the racism scandal that has rocked their club.

That followed two reports from Justice John Middleton and Gordon Legal indicating that there was “no bias whatsoever” that a subculture of racism existed at the Hawks between 2008 to 2015.

Wilson also revealed that the league is concerned about Clarkson’s wellbeing.

“Without a doubt we can’t dismiss the fact that ‘Fages’ (Chris Fagan) and myself have been under an enormous amount of pressure over the last 18 months,” Clarkson said on Thursday.

“Just things build up and you don’t know that it’s happening to you until you get in an emotional state, and then you react.

“The best way to try to avoid that is to keep away from getting in a significant emotional state and that’s probably better off being in a box than down on the bench.”

Despite his own personal struggles, Clarkson paid tribute to Neale Daniher, who is fighting Motor Neurone Disease, as the league prepares to raise funds as part of the Big Freeze round.

“Life hasn’t really been fair to me and Fages either – we’ve had to deal with that stress – but it’s nothing compared to ‘Rowdy’ (Neale Daniher),” Clarkson said.

Clarkson will coach North Melbourne against West Coast on Saturday afternoon at Optus Stadium.

The Eagles will be without star draftee Harley Reid, who was suspended for two weeks after a dangerous sling tackle on St Kilda’s Darcy Wilson.