Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson has put pen to paper on a new deal which will see him at the helm of the Hawks until at least the end of the 2022 season.

Speaking at the club’s Peter Crimmins Medal on Saturday night, Hawthorn President Jeff Kennett announced the news to a packed room at Crown Palladium.

The new deal extends Clarkson’s tenure at the Hawks to 18 seasons and supersedes his current contract, which previously secured Clarkson’s services until the end of the 2019 season. 

Hawthorn CEO Justin Reeves said there was never any doubt that Clarkson was the right man to lead the brown and gold into a 15th season and beyond.

“Alastair’s re-signing is a credit to the incredible coach and person that he is and is a reflection of the stability and ambition of our club,” said Reeves.

“His passion, loyalty and fierce competitiveness continues to drive our entire football club in pursuit of our 14^th premiership. We know Alastair is the right person to help us achieve further success and we are very fortunate to have him continue his career with the Hawks.

“Alastair is a proven innovator of our game and his proficiency as a leader of players, coaches and staff is second to none. Both the club and Alastair share a strong desire to build upon our storied history and focus on improving in all areas, both on and off the field.”

Clarkson began as Hawthorn’s coach in 2005 and is currently in his 14th season as senior coach.

The 50-year old finished the 2018 season with 329 games under his coaching belt. 

In 2017 Clarkson became the longest serving coach in the club’s history having surpassed previous record holder John Kennedy Snr (299 games).

From 2013 to 2015, Clarkson coached the Hawks to a rare premiership threepeat, only the second occurrence in the history of the game since it became nationwide.

Clarkson stands as the only coach to have won four AFL premierships, with only four coaches having won more premierships in the history of the VFL/AFL.

In reaching his 300 game milestone in 2017, Clarkson became just the 14th coach to reach the milestone and ranks second for winning percentage in that illustrious group behind Tom Hafey.