Crows AFLW senior coach and men’s assistant coach Matthew Clarke has been awarded AFL Life Membership.
On Wednesday, Clarke became the first person to qualify for AFL Life Membership through contributions to both the AFL and AFLW programs.
The AFL honoured Clarke in recognition of his dedication and high achievement, having been involved in 302 games (to date) at the highest level.
One of the leading tap rucks of his era, Clarke played 258 AFL games with three clubs throughout his senior career – Brisbane (130), Adelaide (118) and St Kilda (10).
The man affectionately known as ‘Doc’ also played four State of Origin games and 25 pre-season games.
Since retiring in 2007, Clarke has been an assistant coach in Adelaide’s men’s program and was named AFLW senior coach in 2019, guiding the Crows to a Premiership in his first season.
Clarke is heading into his third season as the AFLW senior coach in 2021 with Adelaide set to play its first game on Saturday, January 30.
