NEWLY appointed North Melbourne co-captain Luke McDonald said he and his teammates have completely \u201cbought-in\u201d to Alastair Clarkson\u2019s methods this pre-season.<\/p>\n
Clarkson joined the Kangaroos on a five-year deal in August after taking the 2022 season off.<\/p>\n
With four premierships to his name from his time at Hawthorn, Clarkson joins the Kangaroos with genuine credits in the bank and McDonald says the 54-year-old\u2019s \u201cenergy\u201d is reverberating at Arden Street.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe energy that Clarko has brought in since he\u2019s got here with his new acquisitions has just been unbelievable,\u201d McDonald told SEN Breakfast.<\/p>\n
\u201cAll of the boys and the whole club has really bought in. There is usually a bit of excitement pre-Christmas because no one has had a loss yet.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut it\u2019s just an exciting time and we\u2019re so lucky to have Clarko as our coach.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people we\u2019ve bought in, they\u2019re all really good people and really strong footy people that have been involved in really successful environments, that\u2019s what we want to build at North Melbourne.\u201d<\/p>\n
Along with the Clarkson appointment, McDonald said other alterations at North Melbourne have helped conjure a good feeling at the club with a change of the football department\u2019s location front of mind.<\/p>\n
\u201cI mentioned briefly yesterday that moving the footy department right into the middle of the footy club has made it a real open environment,\u201d McDonald said.<\/p>\n
\u201cMembership staff, admin staff, AFLW staff, everyone can walk through and see what\u2019s happening in our meetings and it\u2019s just the little things.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had our first ever, since I\u2019ve been here, full club Christmas party so everyone can get to know each other, it\u2019s not just about the AFL players, it\u2019s about the whole staff, the AFLW players, the VFL players, it\u2019s that one-club approach.<\/p>\n
\u201cEveryone\u2019s on board, if we\u2019re doing well off the field hopefully that emulates on the field.\u201d<\/p>\n
McDonald was announced as North Melbourne\u2019s co-captain for the 2023 season alongside midfielder Jy Simpkin last week.<\/p>\n
The Kangaroos open up their 2023 campaign with a round one clash against West Coast on 18 March.<\/p>\n