North Melbourne has appointed Todd Viney to the role General Manager of Football to work alongside incoming coach Alastair Clarkson.

As part of the changes to the club’s football department, GM of Football Performance Dan McPherson and assistant coaches Heath Younie and Anthony Rocca will depart Arden St.

Brady Rawlings will continue to the lead the club’s recruiting and list management team and will report to Viney under the new structure.

After three years away from the game, Viney will return to oversee all on-field facets of the men’s and women’s football programs, including coaching, operations, high performance, medical services and player development.

A former Melbourne captain, Viney enjoyed a successful AFL career, playing 233 games from 1987-1999. Viney is a two-time best and fairest winner and a member of the Demons’ team of the century.

A career in coaching began in 2000 with Viney assuming an assistant coaching role with Melbourne before stints at Hawthorn (2005-2008) and Adelaide (2009-2010).

Viney’s return to the Demons at the end of 2010 saw him undertake multiple roles over eight years including caretaker coach, assistant coach and more recently, GM of Player Personnel.

“Todd is a widely respected figure of the game with great football nous, and he will be a huge asset to our club,” North Melbourne CEO Ben Amarfio said.

“Todd’s vast experience in a range of football roles has given him an understanding of all aspects of the game. We look forward to him leading our football program and working alongside Alastair.”

Viney will officially begin in the role on Monday, August 29 on a part-time basis before transitioning to full-time on November 1.

Amarfio also paid tribute to the outgoing staff, each of whom made significant contributions to the club, especially across a challenging 2022. 

“Dan joined the club last year after eight seasons with Melbourne in various football roles, including the club’s GM of Football Operations,” Amarfio said.

“Dan is a quality individual who worked incredibly hard this year and did a lot of great work but this is the harsh reality of the industry when you restructure a football department. 

“The same goes for Heath and Anthony, who have been wonderful contributors to our club and showed great commitment to their roles.”

Last week the club also parted company with Head of Medical Services Clint Frazer.  

“We thank Dan, Heath, Anthony and Clint for their efforts and wish them well in their future roles,” Amarfio said.