Jason Horne-Francis never settled at North Melbourne but might have stayed had there been more certainty around Alastair Clarkson's job, the former No.1 draft pick's manager says.
The talented midfielder was traded to Port Adelaide on Monday after just one, mostly unhappy, season at Arden St.
Horne-Francis clashed at times with his Kangaroos teammates and was dropped for a game in August for failing to live up to team standards.
The 19-year-old on Tuesday conceded he made mistakes at North, but said he was desperate to move back to South Australia to be close to family.
His manager, Ben Williams, said the uncertainty around Clarkson's start as North coach made the decision to request a trade easier.
The four-time Hawthorn premiership coach's future in the AFL remains in limbo as he seeks to defend himself against serious historical allegations dating back to his time leading the Hawks. He has denied any wrongdoing.
"Obviously Clarko is having a bit of time away from the club, so we've just been dealing exclusively with (list manager) Brady Rawlings," Williams told SEN.
"We're not in that situation (where Clarkson is coach) so we had to make a decision on the facts that we have at hand."
Asked if Horne-Francis might have stayed had Clarkson's future been more clear, Williams said, "Potentially, that could be the case".
North collected their second-straight wooden spoon after winning just two games this year, with the club bringing David Noble's brief tenure as coach to an end in July.
Williams agreed the trouble North found themselves in played a role in Horne-Francis not enjoying his debut AFL season.
"Moving away interstate as an 18-year-old, that's tough for all kids, but he's arrived at the club when they were going through quite a lot of things," he said.
"Everything that happened with David Noble, and Jase had a lot of steep learning curves throughout the year, and dealing with what was happening.
"It was very hard for him to settle."
