Alastair Clarkson will become the most experienced Hawthorn coach of all-time when he leads the Hawks this weekend for the 300th time this weekend.
However, Clarkson has been keen to ensure that even in his milestone week, the legacy of John Kennedy Snr is acknowledged.
“I’ve got enormous regard for him,” Clarkson said at his press conference last week.
“Numbers don’t mean a hell of a lot to me.
“No matter what happens in regard to that record, John Kennedy will always be the Godfather of this footy club.
“That’s the way I view it and I’m sure that’s the way a lot of our supporters view it, and that’s the way we want them to view it.
“He was the initiator of all our culture and our initial success, and set the pattern for what has been a really strong footy club over a long period of time.”
Clarkson has been involved in football since 1987, when he was a midfielder at North Melbourne, coached then by Kennedy Snr.
Clarkson has taken many learnings from Kennedy, including the discipline and family values so heavily driven by Kennedy in the late 50s.
Writing for the club’s bi-annual magazine in 2014, Clarkson paid homage to the culture created by Kennedy and the impact it continues to have on Hawthorn.
“The discipline of our club and its compliance to a set of values that have been indoctrinated consistently since they were pioneered in the Kennedy era of the late 50s, has resulted in our club not having to compete with itself,” Clarkson wrote.
“We’ve had our moments where we’ve lost our way momentarily over the past fifty years, but 12 premiership flags in that time is due recognition of a stable and disciplined organisation built on some basic and earthly values.
“We are proud of our discipline, proud of our values, proud of our history, and proud of our humility. And we are proud to be basic and earthly. Just like family.
“We search for this first and foremost when we recruit people to our club, whether they are staff or players.
“And we celebrate families and the contribution the extended families have made in the upbringing of their sons and daughters who are the current, temporary custodians of the Hawthorn Football Club.
“We also try where possible to embrace those same family values in the workplace. Where you could rely on family to wrap their comforting arms around you in challenging times, we also try to mirror that concern and care from day to day at the Club.
It is not an accident by any stretch. It is a commitment made by our Board that those values must endure, and that no other element of our Club holds anything close to the value of our people and their character.
It is why Grand Final victories are so special, because it is the coming together of so many who have supported those involved with the Club, some for many, many years.
“We are a proud club, and we have Kanga and our families to thank for that.”
