The Hawks have turned their season around after winning just once in the first seven rounds, and have now forced their way into the eight.
But on the eve of its crunch match against bitter rival Essendon, the Hawthorn coach foreshadowed a more potent showing in the second half of the season.
"We've been playing a little bit better but still nowhere near what we still think we're capable of," Clarkson said on Thursday.
"That's exciting in one sense that we still think we've got some upside, but perhaps a little disappointing that we still can't get our best footy together.”
The Hawks were beset by injury in the first part of the season but have improved significantly after getting some key players back in the side.
Clarkson says having a settled line-up is a key for the team’s form revival.
“There has been a subtle difference in terms of the way we’ve gone about things and we’ve tried to keep back guys a little bit fresher but by and large I think the main difference with our side is we are starting to get some continuity with some of our players playing week to week,” he said.
“We had a pretty disrupted early part of the season with (Shaun) Burgoyne and (Wayde) Skipper it’s no coincidence that they’ve played the last five games and we’ve had five victories.
"Some of it is simple personnel and getting them back into the side but there have been a couple of tweaks that we’ve had to make to make our side play a little bit better.”
The Hawks come up against the Bombers just seven weeks after their first encounter.
That match was Hawthorn’s fifth consecutive loss but Clarkson said the side always had the view that it could turn its form around.
“Good periods of form for any side in the competition are only just around the corner if you’ve got belief in your systems and your structures and you get your best personnel available.”
