North Melbourne president Dr Sonja Hood delivered a damning epitaph of what drove the decision to sack Alastair Clarkson following the announcement of his departure on Wednesday.
Contracted until the end of 2027, Hood shed light on the decision to move away from Clarkson as senior coach following a statement to members which confirmed a decision had been reached that his contract would not be extended beyond next year.
"The decision we've made today is about the next four years, where we take the club from here and how we push for silverware," Hood said.
"There is not enough belief among the key people on or off the field he is the right person to drive that."
General Manager of Football Todd Viney added detail about why that became the case and what informed the club's decision.
He indicated the program became too heavy for players to grasp, and Clarkson, noted as a workhorse, took on too much and did not delegate well enough, which contributed to messages that did not resonate.
"There's been some clear progress...but unfortunately there's still some gaping holes in our game plan which we have been looking to try and fix, and there's some key metrics which I'm not going to deep dive into now that we haven't been able to arrest and therefore, we haven't been able to make the jump.
"I think if there was one thing Clarko did, (it was trying) too hard in trying to fix that and therefore what happens is we get into more meetings, more information and the players at the end of the day become a little bit confused, and we don't get the cohesion that we need to win more games.
"The players have been very supportive of what Clarko has tried to produce.
"As I just mentioned, the main issue has been for us to take that next step in trying to fix some of the underlying problems in our game plan. In trying to educate, messages have become a little bit muddier, and players feel like they haven't been clear.
Hood said Clarkson was prepared to go into 2027 without a contract and admitted that he is "upset" and lauded his impact on helping the club progress from where it was in 2023.
"He was absolutely the right person to bring into this club (in 2023). I don't resile from that, and I think he has done a really important job in the stability of this club," Hood said.
"It's for others to decide what happens from here in terms of my leadership, but I feel that was the strong decision to make at the time and this is the strong decision to take for the club now."
Hood reiterated that the club does not have a preferred candidate.
Asked if finals was the expectation for next year, he said: "That's my hope."
"This club needs a coach who can coach for the modern game. It will be a coach who knows what they're doing, and it'll be a coach who is the best fit for this club."
