As soon as Alastair Clarkson left Hawthorn at the end of 2021, the drums began beating about where the AFL coaching great would turn up next.
Clarkson announced he would be taking some time out and wouldn't be joining another team — but that didn't stop the chatter, and 11 months on it's still going.
Now the departure of David Noble as coach of North Melbourne is set to kick things into a higher gear.
Initially, Carlton and Collingwood responded to Clarkson's decision with their appointments of Michael Voss and Craig Mcrae, respectively — and both selections have paid off in spades.
For the rest of the football world, what ensued was a game of "Where's Clarko?", where any sightings or information made the headlines — such as the clip of the four-time premiership coach wandering into the Golden State Warriors' arena in San Francisco ahead of a big game.
Regardless of the photos and footage of Clarkson's overseas trip/fact-finding mission, the unspoken thought from most people was that he would make his way back to an AFL team, if not this year then next.
As a result, any team showing the slightest signs of vulnerability or impatience with their situation came under the spotlight as a possible next destination for Clarko.
Re-signings narrow the options for Clarkson
When Leon Cameron left GWS mid-season, it seemed inevitable that there would be a bidding war for Clarkson's signature.
As the season went on, however, the field has appeared to narrow quite considerably.
The surge from the Suns has seen Gold Coast secure the services of Stuart Dew for another two years, while St Kilda have confirmed Brett Ratten will be the man at the Saints for a further two seasons.
Aside from the Suns, Saints and GWS, the focus had been on clubs like North Melbourne and Essendon.
The Bombers lost six of their first seven games and 10 of their first 12, as the pressure ratcheted up on second-year coach Ben Rutten.
But a series of big wins over St Kilda, Sydney and Brisbane have brought more optimism to Essendon and increased the chances of Rutten remaining in charge.
West Coast has also had an awful season, with only two wins out of 17, but Adam Simpson is contracted until the end of 2024 and looks settled.
But nothing is certain in the AFL coaching game, and as a two-time Kangaroos premiership player he could still be a chance for North in 2023.
Will clubs now enter the bidding for Clarko?
The announcement that Noble is leaving North Melbourne after 38 games in charge — the last 14 of them losses — could well prompt clubs, including the Kangaroos, to officially enter the bidding war for Clarkson.
Kangaroos president Sonja Hood told a press conference after Noble's departure that reports the club had already spoken to Simpson were wrong.
She also replied "No" when asked if North had talked to Clarkson, and steadfastly refused to speculate on who might be at Arden Street next season.
Regardless, there is now an official vacancy at the Kangaroos, and the club will not be able to avoid talking about possible names forever.
The key question is whether Clarkson is in the mood to take charge of a rebuild at North that will mean several years before the club is even remotely close to finals.
The thinking has been that a man with his experience — who has had nearly a quarter of a century in the coaching ranks since starting as an assistant at St Kilda in 1999 — would want a club more in contention as his next destination.
The option that could fit this criteria does not have a vacancy at present — Port Adelaide.
The Power had a terrible start to 2022, losing the first five games of the season. But they have rebounded to still be in the hunt for finals at 8-8 with six games left.
Coach Ken Hinkley has been at Alberton for 10 seasons, making finals five times and getting to the prelim three times without winning a flag — if the Power does not make it to September this year, it's possible the club could look elsewhere.
It's worth noting, before his phenomenal run as coach of Hawthorn, Clarkson was an assistant coach at Port Adelaide under Mark Williams, and was part of the Power's only AFL flag in 2004.
A Clarkson return to Alberton would be as big a headline move in the City of Churches as Erin Phillips's shift from the Crows to the Power in AFLW.
