The embarrassing oversight that has seen Alastair Clarkson not once named the AFL's coach of the year has led to a policy change by the games's coaching body.

The AFL Coaches Association will implement one of two proposals to be put to the forthcoming annual general meeting, which in both cases will see finals included in the counting of votes.

Overlooked: Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson. Credit:Getty Images

The Coach of the Year award, named after Allan Jeans, in its current form was introduced shortly after the AFL coaches formed their association. The coaches' votes are counted at the end of the home-and-away season. Last year's winner, Western Bulldogs' Luke Beveridge, noted in his speech that he was embarrassed Clarkson, a four-time premiership coach, had never been named coach of the year.

The closest Clarkson came was in 2014, when he lost by one vote to Sydney's John Longmire. The announcement came just days before Sydney were humiliated by Hawthorn in the grand final.