Hodge,the three-time Hawks premiership skipper,defended Clarkson,aftera cultural safety review of the club alleged a number of Indigenous players went through traumatic experiences. He said while he could not speak to the “confronting accusations” in the report,Clarkson had ultimately shaped him into the person he is today.

His defence came amid more allegations of Clarkson’s controlling behaviour,reported inThe Age, involving four-time premiership player Sam Mitchell,now the club coach,and Mitchell’s wife Lyndall in the year she gave birth to twin girls and the family was beset by a number of confronting health problems.

“...[Clarkson] was never afraid to give me the honest truths that I needed. At times that was hard to hear but it came exclusively from a place of love and care for me and my future,” Hodge said in a statement on Twitter.

Hodge said when he and wife Lauren started their family,Clarkson became “the one I turned to”.

“He has always shared his own stories and helped me to be comfortable in my own skin,” Hodge said.

“I know people will have their own opinions on what I’m saying,but I just had to show support in a tough time for those that did exactly that for me throughout the more challenging moments of my life.”

Hodge’s statement came as Hardwick revealed Clarkson,his former mentor,was struggling with the allegations levelled at him by four former First Nations players and their families from their time with the Hawks. The families have engaged legal counsel.

Hardwick was an assistant under Clarkson at the Hawks from 2005 to 2009,including the 2008 premiership,before leaving for Punt Road.

“I know this guy. I’ve known him for a hell of a long time,and he’s not in a great place,let’s be perfectly honest,” Hardwick said in Perth on Saturday at a function ahead of the WAFL grand final,having replaced Clarkson as a guest speaker.

In the comments,reported by theWest Australian,Hardwick added:“To have that accusation and alleged incidents thrown at you and then splashed across the media when you don’t have an opportunity to defend yourself is incredibly disheartening and probably a little bit distasteful.

“What we do have to do is work our way through it,come to the other side and hopefully,for the benefit of everyone,we grow and we learn together.

“What I think sport does is we put all the diversity and gender and all that aside and play the game for the love of it. And that’s what we’ve got to remember and we’ve got to get back to that and figure out how we get the best result for everyone moving forward because that’s what sport generally does and,hopefully,will continue to do.”

It has been alleged that Clarkson took Mitchell’s phone away from him while on an interstate trip for a game in 2011,despite Mitchell’s twin babies being frequently taken to hospital. Clarkson is also alleged to have questioned why the midfielder,the 2008 premiership captain,had more children just 11 months after the birth of his first.

That Clarkson is alleged to have also revealed publicly the midfielder would miss a game because of the twins’ health without Mitchell’s knowledge or consent has added to pressure he is under.

Mitchell,who like Clarkson expressed unwillingness to work together in 2022 as part of a coaching succession plan,refused to comment on the allegations involving him and wife Lyndall when contacted on Friday. The AFL is aware of the Mitchell allegations but did not wish to comment when contacted on Saturday. Clarkson’s manager also declined to comment.

North Melbourne,having to put contingency plans in place for pre-season training now Clarkson,their new coach,has taken a leave of absence,also did not wish to comment.

A cultural safety review commissioned by Hawthorn contained testimonies from former players and their partners about their time at the club between 2010 and 2016,alleging they were forced to separate from each other. One Indigenous player alleged he was told that his partner had to terminate her pregnancy.

Clarkson has strenuously denied the allegations detailed in the report.

Former Hawthorn football manager Fagan – who is now the head coach of Brisbane – was also named in the cultural review. He has also rejected the allegations and was not interviewed for the report,but will co-operate with the league’s investigation.

Fagan,who has taken a leave of absence,did not attend the Lions’ best-and-fairest count on Friday night,but delivered a pre-recorded speech. He said he “always felt supported” by Lions chief executive Greg Swann and chairman Andrew Wellington.

Hodge said his strong “trust and belief” in Fagan motivated him to join the Lions for the 2018 season and move his family interstate.

Kangaroos president Sonja Hood has previously said she supports Clarkson’s version of events relating to the Hawthorn report.

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