PRIOR to Hawthorn's clash against the Sydney Swans in round 18, coach Alastair Clarkson called his former star forward Lance Franklin a "faceless man" when asked about Franklin's importance in the contest.
The comment lent credence to a suggestion in footy circles the pair had fallen during the 2013 season, Franklin's last at the club.
In a story in this week's AFL Record, Hawthorn's general manager of football operations Chris Fagan said the pair met at Clarkson's house after the Hawks' round 18 win to collect a 2013 premiership memento the club had produced for each player.
"Each player got one and they were individualised," Fagan said
"'Clarko' hadn't had a chance to give 'Bud' his because they weren't completed until a week or two after the Grand Final.
"So Bud went down to Clarko's place and collected that and spent a bit of time there. I wouldn't say they were bosom buddies, but they're on talking terms and there's no ill feeling."
The AFL Record feature, written to coincide with Clarkson's 10 seasons at the club, also focuses on how the two-time premiership was hired, with then-caretaker CEO Jason Dunstall suggesting the need for "bold change" was the catalyst for the surprise hiring.
Clarkson was rated only an outside chance when Hawthorn started searching for a new senior coach in 2004.
Not only was he untried and relatively unknown, but he lacked something else – the brown and gold ticket.
Not since the legendary Allan Jeans took over in 1981 had Hawthorn plucked a senior coach from outside its ranks.
Clarkson, then an assistant at Port Adelaide, never played for the Hawks and was competing for the job against three premiership players.
The Hawks faithful expected Terry Wallace or Rodney Eade to be saddled with the task of rebuilding the struggling club, while Gary Ayres was also in the running.
But Hawthorn needed a new direction, according to Jason Dunstall.
The champion full-forward headed up the search for Peter Schwab's replacement and was convinced that bold change was necessary.
"I think we needed to take a different tack because we'd always done it the old Hawthorn way," Dunstall told the AFL Record.
"So I think it was important to look outside of that. He came in and it's fair to say he had very strong ideas about certain things – attention to detail and standards that needed to be set."
The Hawks made an unexpected but calculated call on Clarkson and – 10 seasons on – that decision has proved a masterstroke.
The ex-North Melbourne and Melbourne midfielder is on target to become Hawthorn's longest-serving coach. In round 10 this year – against his former club Port – Clarkson surpassed Jeans' 221 games and climbed into second spot on that list.
When his contract expires at the end of 2016, Clarkson will be within range of the immortal John Kennedy's club-record 299 games.
His winning record compares favourably with the two coaching greats. The late Jeans enjoyed a formidable 74 per cent success rate during Hawthorn's golden era.
Kennedy and Clarkson – despite the rocky road early in his tenure – boast 61 per cent winning records.
In a month's time, he could join them as a triple-premiership Hawthorn coach.
Read the full Alastair Clarkson feature in the round 23 edition of the AFL Record, which is available at all grounds.
