Former Hawks legend claims Alastair Clarkson was denied service at a gas station over a racist scandal with embattled coach ‘unlikely’ to face penalties
- Racist scandal at Hawks continues to drag on
- A resolution eight months later seems unlikely
- Alastair Clarkson is furious with his treatment
- Was targeted at a petrol station after the story broke
- Former Hawks coach denied any wrongdoing
Hawthorn great Jordan Lewis has revealed his former manager Alastair Clarkson was refused service at a petrol station when the AFL’s racist scandal involving First Nations players was first reported last September.
It comes as the embattled coach – along with Chris Fagan and Jason Burt – are ‘unlikely’ to face sanctions based on the evidence presented to the Hawthorn racism inquiry to date.
Lewis, who won four premierships with the Hawks, didn’t mince words on Fox Footy.
He said the club had “blood on their hands” and that Clarkson was “the most resilient person I have ever met in my life”.
“The more I talk about it, the angrier I get,” Lewis said.
Hawthorn great Jordan Lewis has revealed former coach Alastair Clarkson was refused service at a petrol station when the racism scandal was first reported last September
Lewis told Fox Footy Clarkson deserved better and the chance to clear his name
“When the news first broke, it [Clarkson] went down the coast to get away from it all.
“He stopped at a petrol station and the person behind the counter refused to serve him. Because of these allegations.
“I don’t know how many times in his daily life that would have happened, but it would wear you down.”
Lewis was not yet finished, saying those “set up to interview both sides of the situation to get a clearer picture of what really happened have not done their job”.
“I feel for the native players because they probably got into this situation hoping there would be an outcome. Again, eight months later, they still feel like they are in limbo,” he added.
“The same goes for the other side of the camp. They [three coaches] didn’t even get a chance to speak.
“I couldn’t imagine that they would want to go back to the [Hawthorn] football club for a long, long time. It’s truly sad.’
Clarkson stepped down as Kangaroos head coach indefinitely this week, citing his sanity resulting from the investigation – Brett Ratten (pictured right) will take over in the meantime
It comes as Clarkson stepped down as head coach at North Melbourne indefinitely on Thursday, citing mental health issues stemming from the saga during his time at Hawthorn.
A report in age Revealed investigators are asked to end the eight-month investigation.
Clarkson is said to be ‘guessing’ himself, and he told North Melbourne chair Sonja Hood and chief executive Jennifer Watt on Wednesday that he ‘needed some help’ and that he didn’t wasn’t in the current headspace to be a head coach.
Brett Ratten will be the caretaker coach at Arden St and is “ready to step in for my mate and my club”.
