AFL 2025: North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson on concussed young gun George Wardlaw
North Melbourne coach Alastair Clarkson says he won't take 'take the beast out' of hard-nosed midfielder George Wardlaw despite yet another concussion setback.
Wardlaw sustained a third concussion in 12 months during the Kangaroos' disappointing loss to Hawthorn on Saturday.
He will enter the concussion protocols but could sit on the sidelines for longer as North Melbourne prioritises the health of its young star.
Wardlaw was seemingly in good health at training on Tuesday, completing some running away from the main group.
Clarkson says every footballer runs the risk of injury and has no intention of changing the way Wardlaw attacks the contest.
'He's been asked this question plenty of times, what do you change with him? He's habitual, it's the way he plays his footy,' he said.
'You just hope over time he gathers a bit more awareness, a little bit more luck, a bit stronger in his body, perhaps.
'I try to take the beast out of the way that he plays and you won't have the same George Wardlaw.
'That's the risk we all have when we play the game, hope he gets a good run of luck.'
Wardlaw was not the only Roo away from the main group on Tuesday, with Luke Parker absent from the track.
Clarkson says the short turnaround between the Hawks and Western Bulldogs this Thursday is forcing the Roos to limit the training of a few sore bodies.
North Melbourne trains again on Wednesday and will put several players through a fitness test ahead of selection.
'We've got a whole heap of guys because it's such a short break, we trained today and most of those guys were able to do something,' Clarkson said.
'It's just getting them moving a bit, we'll train tomorrow and then select our side tomorrow night.
'(Parker) is one of those guys that we need to test tomorrow, some of them didn't come out on the track at all today or they did very, very light duties on the side.
'They'll present tomorrow with another 24 hours of recovery (and) see how we go. We'll have a couple of certainties out … George and Jack Darling.
'We'll test a couple others tomorrow, see how they pull up and if they're no good we'll just go in with fresh guys.'
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