r/hawktalk

I've been thinking recently, wow i'm glad we have the Eagles to play this week. We can use this opportunity to return to form, and build back lost confidence from the past few weeks. Not to mention the warmup in Perth.

Not to say it will be an easy win at all, Eagles can get some momentum and have been playing decently throughout the year. It's not a Richmond or Essendon. I've always remembered how this group has surprised me, especially in finals last year. Remember we were 8th? Took out Adelaide and a firing GWS. Let's not talk about the Geelong game...

My point is, i'm actually excited to see what we can do. I think we play better as the underdog and hey, our game got exposed - which is a very normal thing, every good team is studying the oppo. It's our chance to try something different , and hopefully have some poise, to surprise teams in finals...

Or we might just go out straight sets. Which will be disappointing, but what can you do.

Let's Go Hawks

Anybody care to comment on the best scenario for Hawthorn and can the Pies worry the Lions.

I would think that Collingwood should play a contested brand of footy that stacks up to see if they can get back on some revenge from last year when playing the Lions.

I’m not sure if Harley Reid is worth playing full game time if the Eagles have nothing to play for. I mean if he got an injury from his cork it would be a set back for the Eagles next season.

This is also a chance for Hawthorn to play four quarters of great football before finals. So I believe we can get the score we need to better our percentage of the Collingwood game isn’t a blow out.

Would you be pissed if you went to the game and the Lions cake walked all over them if you were a fan or a member.

Anyway I hope we can get some luck this weekend.

I could make this a long post and do a full debrief of his season but i think that would be a waste of everyone’s time. Let’s just cut to the chase, he’s been below average this year. I don’t think it’s too hard to agree with that. To think he is one of our captains, if he does stay i’d like that role taken off him just because I don’t think he sets the Hawthorn standard. Jai Newcombe gets all green ticks, puts his head over the ball every week and has a real crack. Makes mistakes sure, but not to the degree Sicily does. Sic gives away 50m penalties, fumbles, argues with umps, jogs around all pedestrian-like, rarely uses the ball to the elite level we know him for.

The composure Sicily had with the ball in 2024 and 2025, it’s all gone down the drain rather quickly this year. In 2026, he gets the ball and it’s not like he even panics he’s just too pedestrian to find space to use it well. The bloke needs another gear, he’s got no speed. Now with that said, i understand it is one poor year. However, i do think that he is worth tabling before his value potentially decreases. Another season like this, he will be extremely difficult to trade.

For our group to go to the next level, our midfield needs addressing. We need another Newcombe in there and i think off-loading Sicily could get you the draft capital to load up with King, Merrett and another mystery mid. It’s not like him leaving kills us really, we’ve got Scrim and Mraz who have had opportunity but haven’t played every game. Mraz has shown he’s got some ticker, let’s use that. If our back 6 next year is TB, JB, Jars, Amon, Hardwick, Scrim and Mraz, i will not be mad in fact I probably prefer that. I know it’s a stretch, but the guy has been painfully difficult to watch and as previously said i do fear he could get worse and lose his current value. Am i the only one?

I had this discussion with my dad earlier and there's upsettingly few players who have improved or equalled their form over previous years.

I've left out players that are only just getting their first taste at AFL level, this is mostly based on how players form compares to the best we've seen of them. Also happy to hear differing opinions, but if you can't tell from how I've worded some of these reviews I don't really like bringing players down.

Morrison: You always want more out of him. He was great this week and passable for many. Had some stinkers too though. I would say he's had better years around when clarko left. Barely not a pass for me, but it feels harsh

Lewis: Honestly I'm gonna give him a pass just cause seeing him put some decent footy together is all I want from him right now. Pressure is on next year with another preseason to get back to his pre-injury form.

Newcombe: Big win getting the co-captaincy. He's had some insane numbers in some games, but struggles when tagged. I would say he played better last year but was also tagged less. Also we haven't seen his finals performances yet. Gonna give him a pass but barely

Impey: Finally getting the media attention he deserves. Ironically I think he was even better last year but this is the year they talk about him as potentially AA. Even though I think he's played better in the past, he's so good you have to give him a pass

Watson: Pass. You kick that many goals as a small forward sharing with Gunston and you get a pass. Would love some more consistency and goals late in games. But we can't have everything right?

Sicily: An improvement over last year (remember when he couldn't kick). However comparing him to what he's done in the past it's really hard to give him a pass. He doesn't intercept unless it's a bottom 4 team kicking the ball to him. He tries to draw the pressure to himself by holding the ball too long, then pays for it with an awkward disposal. He sometimes just... gives up. And all the poor discipline. I want to believe in him but I'm not giving him a pass for the year.

Reeves: The best season he's had, but the bar is not very high. He can put in some good performances, but the way we get destroyed by A grade ruckmen leaves a bit to be desired. Still a pass, hopefully the improvement continues and he works on some of his weaknesses.

Dylan Moore: I believe in this guy. Absolutely loves his character and his best footy is really good. That being said this year was a big drop off and I will not be giving his season a pass

Cmac: A weird one. He's turned from a good small forward to a serviceable midfielder. I like the idea but he seems much more dangerous when he's kicking goals. Harsh for a guy in a new role but the season isn't a pass to me

Amon: was not surprised to learn he has been carrying an injury. His form was really off, especially for a guy who was so consistently great for the past two years. Hope he gets back into form, but based on results it's not a pass

Nash: Pass. Playing well until the injury, and we miss him now he's gone.

Day: Recency bias makes me want to not give him a pass. However much like Mitch Lewis, after being injured so long, even just the two good games is enough for a pass. Hope to see more of his best in the next few weeks

Scrimshaw: Not a pass, just hasn't got to play. Not sure if any VFL watchers can tell me otherwise. Hard to fault him with the injuries, and he's been alright when he's played. But he's been better than alright in the past.

Hardwick: Pass. So reliable. Hard to say if he's had a better season in the past. You just know what you're going to get, and it's some good footy.

D'Ambrosio: The hardest to grade for me. He's played better seasons. But that first one was magical and I don't know if we'll get to see if again. Not a pass based on the way I'm judging but I think he's been fine.

Meek: The only player who had rules changed on him that took away the best part of his game. He was always gonna have a rough season. He's been getting back into it though. But once again it's a harsh non-pass based on how I'm grading. (Also got destroyed by Gawn and Jackson which hurts)

Chol: There has been improvements over previous seasons on his willingness to compete to bring the ball to the ground (one or two bad weeks is better than 8-10). But his goal kicking got worse (it might be fixed now) could be a pass, could not be one. Also there's been fewer defensive pressure moments so I changed my mind; not a passing grade this season

Gunston: Pass. Unc still got it

Maginess: People are too harsh on him. Still not a pass but relax a bit guys

Mraz: Pass. What a find. Low-key hoping Sic retires so we play this guy every week.

Weddle: What did they do to my boy. The season doesn't get a pass but I believe in him

Battle: So reliable last year, not so much this year. I think we sometimes do things as a team on the journey to improve that takes us backwards and I think that's the story for a lot of the backline. Not a pass

Ward: Big pass. Took his game to another level this year. Hard to tell what the ceiling is but I don't think he's hit it yet

Mackenzie: Big pass. Took his game to another level this year. Something something ceiling, hasn't hit it yet. Love our young mids

Butler: Injury impacted. I'm not gonna grade his season cause I don't think he deserves a fail

Ginnivan: Love the guy. Wow has he dropped off. He's tried to work down the field more and it's taken him away from where he's most dangerous. It might also leave him fatigued cause his decision making is really bad right now. Once again I believe he can get back to his amazing form but this season is not a pass.

Blanck: Ooft. Wishing him well

Barrass: Another drop in form in the backline. I don't really think it's the fault of the individual. Just something back there isn't working. Hoping for a big turnaround in the off season but this one wasn't a pass.

Bmac: Gonna be a pass. Definitely one of the weaker players receiving a pass but he's young and improving. Hope he doesn't just turn into a decent roleplayer cause some of us seem to love shitting on our decent role players.

Hustwaite: How can someone be so dominant at VFL level but look so out of place on an AFL field. No hate on the guy but we should delist him just to take the temptation away from the team selectors. Hope he finds the secret sauce that brings his game to where it needs to be, but maybe on another team's list

Sam Mitchell: Clearly there has been a shift in the game plan. I don't like it. We're much less entertaining to watch. Feels like a downgrade but we're higher on the ladder than we've ever been under him. He's had games where it feels like he's been out coached, and I can't remember games against relevant teams where it feels he's got the better of the opposition coaches. I'm gonna postpone my review on the season until finals are done, I don't think I would say this if I felt he deserves a pass so far

I’d like to think I’m a pretty optimistic person when it comes to Hawthorn, sometimes probably overly optimistic. But this was just too much for me. It wasn’t a lack of skill or talent tonight, it was a pure lack of effort and willingness to win the ball. There are too many players out of form and too many passengers at the moment. It feels like it’s always the same names showing up and trying to drag us over the line while the rest just watch.

There are so many different ways next week could go and so many different places we could end up on the ladder. But one scenario I can genuinely see happening is us ending up against Freo at Optus in the first week of finals, which is probably the last place anyone in this country wants to be unless you’re a Fremantle player or fan.

I also don’t really blame Moore at all. Yeah, he probably should have got that well over the line, or at least close enough for it to just be rushed through, but we did not deserve to draw tonight, let alone win. If anything, the draw at least keeps some hope alive of finishing 3rd, although at this point I doubt it.

Just going to get straight into the backline, which I thought was absolutely terrible. I guess there are two ways you can look at it. We lost the inside 50 count 60-47, which is a pretty significant margin, yet both teams finished with the same amount of scoring shots. You could argue that means our defence actually held up reasonably well while constantly being under the pump, but watching the game, I think Collingwood were just pretty wasteful with their opportunities.

Sic, congratulations on 200 games, but unfortunately it was just another disappointing performance. I genuinely cannot remember the last time Sicily looked like Sicily. At one point he was arguably the best defender in the competition, and the version I’m watching now just looks so far off that level. Tom Barrass has genuinely been so below average recently that it’s not even funny. When was the last time he really imposed himself on a game and looked like the player we brought him to the club to be?

Battle was good again and is probably the one defender who hasn’t really put a foot wrong this year. I genuinely don’t have anything bad to say about him. He also did a decent job in the ruck when asked today and was swung forward for a bit as well, so he basically did everything we could have asked of him.

Josh Battle: 8.0/10 — 20 disposals @ 85%, 6 interceptions, 6 marks, 5 tackles, 5 rebound 50s.

James Sicily: 5.6/10 — 19 disposals, 8 interceptions, 5 marks, 5 score involvements, 3 rebound 50s. The thing is, the stats actually look pretty good. But I know there is a version of Sicily that is so many levels above what we’re currently seeing, which is what makes his form so frustrating.

Tom Barrass: 5.2/10 — 8 disposals, 4 marks, 4 tackles, 4 interceptions, 4 rebound 50s.

Hardwick was okay, probably just a bit of a quieter game from him. Bailey MacDonald was pretty good for me and proved again why he needs to stay in this side. His willingness to take the game on was really impressive, especially in a game where so many of our players looked hesitant with the ball.

Amon was decent. He had a few crucial moments, but overall he also looks so far off the old threatening player he use to be . I just don’t think he’s adding enough to the side right now, and at some point you have to wonder whether we’d be better off giving someone younger an opportunity who can provide a bit more run. Then again, I don’t think tonight was really a selection issue at all. For me, it simply came down to effort.

Weddle, I actually cannot defend him anymore. Defensively, I thought he was pretty good, but Jesus Christ, with the ball I genuinely don’t know if he did anything positive. Jars was class as per usual and, like I said earlier, it just feels like it’s always the same names lifting us when things aren’t going our way.

Jarman Impey: 8.3/10 — 25 disposals, 7 marks, 5 interceptions, 8 score involvements, 5 rebound 50s.

Bailey MacDonald: 7.8/10 — 13 disposals, 4 interceptions, 2 score involvements, 2 marks, 304m gained.

Karl Amon : 7.0/10 - 18 disposals @ 94%, 5 interceptions, 5 score involvements, 5 rebound 50s, 415m gained.

Blake Hardwick: 6.5/10 — 13 disposals, 2 interceptions, 6 rebound 50s, 3 marks.

Josh Weddle: 4.5/10 — 11 disposals, 5 marks, 3 interceptions, 4 rebound 50s, 4 turnovers. Is it getting to the point where he needs to go back to Box Hill for a game or two, or am I jumping the gun?

The biggest issue for me is just how lacklustre our defence looks at times. There seems to be absolutely zero confidence when we’re moving the ball out of the backline or trying to win it back once we lose it. The amount of easy marks Collingwood were taking inside 50 because our players were constantly caught out of position was extremely infuriating.

I don’t know exactly what the solution is, but this has genuinely been such a poor last three weeks of footy from us, and I’m including the North game in that. The talent is clearly there, which almost makes it more frustrating. Right now it doesn’t feel like we’re being beaten because we aren’t good enough; we’re being beaten because too many players aren’t consistently bringing the effort, confidence and intensity that made us such a good side in the first place.

The midfield was kind of impressive and disappointing at the same time. Individually, I thought Josh Ward had a really good game and Newcombe worked his backside off all day, while the others kind of popped up in moments. Ward was massive in that fourth quarter and deserves a lot of the credit for us even managing to get a draw. Newcombe copped a tag all night but just kept working through it. I loved both of their games, and I think if the rest of the midfield had stood up around them, we’d probably be talking about their performances as elite.

Will Day was pretty disappointing again, and I think we’re well past the point where I can keep giving him too many excuses. Yes, I don’t expect him to immediately come back and play like one of the best midfielders in the competition, but the standard he has dished up these last few weeks just isn’t helping us at all. We know how important he can be to this midfield at his best, which is why his current form is so frustrating.

Cam Mackenzie was solid. He had some really good moments but was also pretty fumbly with the ball in my eyes. Nothing overly negative to say about his performance though, and he was definitely the least of our troubles.

Josh Ward: 8.6/10 — 20 disposals, 2 goals, 9 score involvements, 5 centre clearances, 4 interceptions, 5 tackles. Just a perfectly well-rounded game both offensively and defensively. This is all I ask for.

Jai Newcombe: 8.4/10 — 24 disposals @ 62%, 1 goal, 9 score involvements, 4 clearances, 3 inside 50s.

Cam Mackenzie: 7.6/10 — 18 disposals, 1 goal, 5 score involvements, 4 clearances, 4 tackles.

Will Day: 5.7/10 — 16 disposals, 6 interceptions, 5 turnovers, 4 score involvements, 3 inside 50s.

Despite three of our four mids having decent individual games, I still felt like Collingwood looked so much better at stoppage whenever it mattered. They just looked hungrier. They constantly had us outnumbered, ran harder both ways and applied an insane amount of pressure compared to us.

The numbers back that up too. The tackle count was 92-50 in Collingwood’s favour, while the inside 50 tackle count was 20-3. That genuinely disgusts me. I can cop Nick Daicos, who is arguably the best player in the competition, absolutely dominating us. What I cannot accept is a complete lack of intensity and pressure around the contest.

That was especially obvious in the first half. It felt like every tackle we tried to lay was broken, there was basically no pressure being put on the ball carrier, and the ball spent what felt like the entire half inside Collingwood’s forward 50. You’re not going to win many games of footy when the opposition is bringing that much more pressure and willingness to compete than you are, regardless of how talented your side is.

Onto Meek, who outside of that one horrid error towards the end, I actually thought had a solid game. He was good in the ruck and chipped in around the ground when he could. There were several players who made costly errors throughout the game, it’s just a shame his happened with less than a minute remaining and will obviously be remembered more because of it.

Morrison was actually really good. He worked so hard all day and was genuinely one of our most threatening players with ball in hand, which isn’t necessarily something you expect from him. He’s been one of the shining lights of this season for me and has completely flown under the radar.

Massimo was okay, but pretty average overall. I definitely thought he could have impacted the game more, especially considering Collingwood’s wingmen kind of dominated us. Swadling was extremely influential behind the ball and Roan Steele had a pretty good game as well.

And that brings me to my next issue. Why is a basically full-strength Hawthorn side nearly losing to a Collingwood team that had what felt like half a VFL squad playing?

There was a reason Craig McRae was reacting like Collingwood had won after the siren despite the game ending in a draw. It’s because there is absolutely no reason we should have been that close to losing that game. We got embarrassed by Brisbane last week, then got handed an undermanned Collingwood side and an opportunity to make a statement in response. Instead, we made a fool of ourselves.

That’s probably the most disappointing part for me. After what happened against Brisbane, you would expect the response to at least be there from an effort and intensity perspective. Instead, an undermanned Collingwood side looked hungrier, tackled harder, ran harder and competed harder than us for large parts of the game. Regardless of who is actually available on either side, that should never happen.

Harry Morrison: 8.5/10 — 20 disposals @ 90%, 6 marks, 4 tackles, 4 score involvements, 4 inside 50s, 3 interceptions.

Lloyd Meek: 7.0/10 — 11 disposals, 43 hitouts, 1 goal, 6 tackles, 4 score involvements, 2 clearances. Darcy Cameron probably got the better of him overall, but I’m not upset about this Meek performance.

Massimo D’Ambrosio: 6.2/10 — 15 disposals, 8 marks, 4 turnovers, 4 score involvements, 2 inside 50s, 2 rebound 50s.

Onto the forwards, who were once again pretty disappointing as a collective, particularly the smalls. HawthornZone addressed this on Instagram, but I’d just like to reiterate it because what used to be such a threatening and dangerous part of our side has become so disappointing.

A year ago, MacDonald, Ginnivan and Watson were absolutely dominating the Pies, whipping out their celebrations and playing the game completely on their terms. Compare that to what we saw last night and the difference is pretty significant. Watson and Moore I thought had decent games, but Ginni and CMac were absolutely awful.

Watson played a fair bit higher up the ground, saw a lot more of the ball and generally used it well. Despite not kicking a goal, I actually didn’t mind his performance at all. Sometimes we get too caught up in judging small forwards purely on goals, and I thought he still found ways to impact the game further up the ground.

Pretty crazy that Moore once again had the deciding kick against the same side in the same season. Despite not being able to convert, I thought he had a decent game overall and, like I said earlier, I’m not putting the result on him.

Ginnivan has been really poor these last couple of weeks. His decision-making in particular has been awful at times, and considering he started the season in arguably the best form of his career, the drop-off has been pretty significant. He’s gone from being one of our most dangerous players to almost reaching the point where you have to question whether his form warrants keeping his spot.

MacDonald was basically nowhere to be seen. He just couldn’t get near the ball for most of the game. He actually did alright when he had it, and six score involvements from eight touches proves he was still able to make something happen, but we simply need a lot more involvement from him.

I thought Beattie was extremely impressive early and put together a really solid debut. He brought pressure, his decision-making was great and he looked really composed for someone playing his first game. I actually rate him pretty highly and would love to see him stay in the side.

Dylan Moore: 8.0/10 — 19 disposals, 1 goal, 8 marks, 13 score involvements, 2 tackles.

Max Beattie: 7.5/10 — 10 disposals, 1 goal, 5 score involvements, 4 marks, 1 tackle.

Nick Watson: 7.4/10 — 20 disposals, 7 score involvements, 5 turnovers, 5 inside 50s, 3 marks, 350m gained.

Jack Ginnivan: 4.8/10 — 13 disposals, 2 marks, 2 tackles, 4 score involvements, 4 inside 50s.

Connor MacDonald: 4.4/10 — 8 disposals, 1 goal, 6 score involvements, 3 marks, 1 tackle. Six score involvements from eight touches is actually pretty impressive, but yeah, just completely unlike himself last night.

I thought Lewis and Chol both had really impressive games. They were strong in the air and made the most of what were pretty limited opportunities. Our kicking inside 50, and honestly our ball use further up the ground in general, has been awful recently, so I thought both of them did extremely well considering the service they were receiving.

Chol in particular was massive towards the end of the game and was a big reason why we were able to fight our way back after going 20 points down. His work in the ruck was really good as well, and I’d definitely keep giving him opportunities in there.

Gunston was okay without doing anything special. Obviously 2.4 isn’t the return you want, but a few of those misses came from pretty difficult angles. Knowing how good Gunston normally is around goal, you’d still expect him to convert a couple more of them. But overall, I can’t be too mad at any of the key forwards when the service they received for most of the night was awful.

Mitch Lewis: 8.5/10 — 15 disposals, 8 marks, 2 goals, 10 score involvements, 4 inside 50s, 362m gained.

Mabior Chol: 8.0/10 — 11 disposals, 1 goal, 7 marks, 4 inside 50s, 4 contested marks. Really good in the ruck as well. Keep him in there.

Jack Gunston: 7.0/10 — 14 disposals, 2 goals, 4 behinds, 5 marks, 4 turnovers.

I probably shouldn’t, but I care way too much about footy and take these performances personally, so when we play like this it’s just incredibly frustrating. Especially because I know how much better this side can be, and the biggest issue right now is so obvious. Talent isn’t the problem. We have more than enough of it. The pressure, tackling and overall willingness to compete just hasn’t been at the level it needs to be.

I’m sure there will be a massive focus on tackling and pressure this week before we head into the West Coast game, which simply has to be a win. There’s no other way around it, and I’m confident it will be.

As for finals, I genuinely have no idea what is going to happen. We’re looking pretty likely to verse Freo in that first week, and while going over to Optus is obviously far from ideal, we can beat them. I know we probably wouldn’t go in as favourites, but if we actually show up, bring the pressure and put everything out there for four quarters straight, I truly believe this side is talented and skilled enough to go all the way.

That’s what makes the last few weeks so frustrating. I can genuinely see a version of this team making a deep finals run, because we’ve already seen how good our best footy can be. Unfortunately, based purely on the way we’ve played over these last few weeks, I can just as easily see us going out in straight sets. At this point, it feels like it’s completely up to which version of Hawthorn decides to show up.

As for changes against West Coast, I don’t think it’s necessarily a game where we need to make a heap of them. However, I would like to see a bit more youth in the side. Potentially bringing in Dalton, Greaves and Dear could be good, especially because you can always count on those boys to put everything out there when they get their opportunity.

What does everyone else think?

Honestly - still bitterly disappointed and leaves me to believe we are just making up the numbers at this point.

Yes - a 3rd placed finish would have left us with a more favourable QF against Sydney at the SCG. But on current form, I can't see us beating them in a few weeks. Losing to Fremantle in a QF likely places us in a SF against either Melbourne or Collingwood - both teams we've struggled against big time this year.

In my opinion, we lack the 'killer instinct' required to genuinely compete with the other Top 6 teams. No one other than Newcombe, Impey and maybe Ward (at times) decided to put their hand up in the face of adversity last night. Having that many passengers in such a hot contest won't win you a final, let alone a premiership.

Dare I say, are we looking at a straight sets exit? Or is there hope and am I overreacting?

It’s another draw!!!

I like him, his speedy attack on the ball is refreshing compared to Sicily's casual efforts which often put his handball recievers under pressure. I think that urgency is a rare trait in some young players so keen to see if he'll mature into a sort of Impey role for us in years to come. Add to that his improving defending instincts. Would love to see him and Mraz leading our defence in 5 years time

Was screaming at the TV for Moorey to play on, was truly concerned he didn't have to leg.

Got too smash WC and hope to jump Lions on percentage, would much rather swans in Sydney than Freo over in the West.

Just can't put 4 quarters together, look like utter shit and world beaters.

Hope we stand up for finals.

I think?

Hi all,

Mods pls don’t delete

Did anyone else get some signed cards from last night that they want to trade?

I got a few I am looking to trade:
Chol
Magginness
Butler
Blanck
Schubert

Looking for some other players like:
Newcombe
Wizz
Weddle
Calsher
Gunners

Feel free to DM

‎

What will Hawthorn need to do to win against Collingwood?

We need to mitigate Nicks supply by chopping it off first or winning clearances. The second thing we need to do is limit the pop and create it for all our small forwards. Then pressure them into bad decision making. The third thing we need to do is win the territory battle. Their backline is thin and they will loose a lot of areal battles if we get it in the fifty enough and lock it in. We also need clean hands going forward. If we catch them out disorganised in the backline they will cough up the ball and we can find space to get good looks.

Any one care to add be my guest.

Has anyone noticed a shift in our game style since the beginning of the year? Not sure if it’s planned/tactical or just loss of skill, injury or player development but I don’t think the coaches would just allow it to happen without a reason.
So I kind of see it in phases:
Phase 1 — Rounds 0-9
This was a very transition-heavy game plan, pretty much 2024/25 Hok with some shorter kicks and a more efficient plan. It won us games against some of the best teams and was the fast game we like to play. I think it was the most damaging style and made us very threatening, especially because it seemed to hold up against good teams when we were under pressure.
It’s actually supported by champion data where after Round 6, Hawthorn ranked 2nd in the competition for half-back-to-score rate, 1st for intercept-to-score and 1st for score-per-inside-50. By Round 7 we were still 1st for intercept-to-score, with 26% of our intercepts resulting in a score. So we were genuinely one of the better teams in the competition at turning those types of possessions into scores.
One thing I think is important though is that we didn't really care too much about/ didn’t have the ability to consistently win centre clearances. If the opposition won it in the centre, we defended that possession especially around centre half-back, forced the turnover/intercept and then would go the other way, turning it into attack.

Phase 2 — midfield/stoppage development
Then at some point, our game plan started looking really different.
There isn't really one exact timeline because I think we alternated styles depending on who we played and obviously had our annual mid-season slump, but particularly in the second GWS and GCs games, our entire game plan seemed to revolve around midfield, clearance, stoppage and territory**.** Just look at how much the numbers changed. Our clearance numbers became crazy compared to earlier rounds, and especially with Will Day back, I could see a massive focus on developing the midfield. We began constantly rotating smalls through centre bounce and using them higher up the ground too (we still are)
The second GWS game is probably the biggest eye test . The conditions were wet and slippery and it made our normal transition football harder to execute, so instead we basically dominated the source. We won centre clearances 16-8, clearances 54-29 and inside 50s 65-40.
That game looked completely different to the Hawthorn we saw earlier in the year. Instead of needing to win the ball around half-back and transition, we were just winning the ball at stoppage and constantly putting it back into our forward half.
And honestly, I think that midfield development has been really successful. I don't think anyone can argue that our midfield isn't significantly better than it was last year. However, our scoring from transition has decreased and our hunger to defend the ball around centre half-back and through the middle seems to have disappeared. Earlier in the year, if we lost territory, I felt like we went into that defensive structure and tried to stop the opposition from transitioning through us.
Now, it feels like every time we lose territory and the opposition puts speed on us, we struggle to keep up and they can get a kick inside 50 way too easily. That could have lots to do with tackling efficiency too, as we barely lay a complete tackle and defend the contest, so dangerously through the corridor, opposition are able to quickly hand ball to an undefended teammate who continues the chain. That may also explain the momentum shifts we’ve all been complaining about and the inability to stop opposition run.
And I think this reliance on the midfield and focus on connecting it to the forward line has really diminished our run off half-back and explosiveness. We look slower and older now. The second Gold Coast game is another massive eye test for me because it felt like the game was being controlled through midfield/stoppage/territory rather than the old explosive half-back game.
Again, I'm not saying this is necessarily bad. It's actually probably exactly what we needed to develop. The problem is that it can't be the only thing we have.

Phase 3 — transition starts coming back
Then, particularly after the Carlton game and when we had that streak of "bottom of the ladder/easier" teams, I felt like we really started trying to rebuild and regain the transition football.
We saw a decline in the midfield performance a little. Richmond beat us in clearance, Day missed a game, Newcombe was averaging well below his usual disposal numbers etc.
But those games mostly focused on rebound off half-back and transition again, and it worked.
Obviously that's expected against that level of opposition, so I'm not saying those games proved we'd solved anything. It's much easier to play fast transition football when the opposition isn't putting the same pressure on you.
But it did show that the transition game is still there.
Then we got Brisbane
And this is where I'm confused.
The Brisbane game looked like a really sad attempt to combine both styles together, or maybe to be able to have different game modes and switch gears depending on what the opposition was doing.
But we failed miserably.
We didn't look like the early-season transition team and we didn't look like the dominant midfield team from the second despite dominating CCs. I also think that has a lot to do with being physically assaulted and also our slow burst from the centre.

Phase 4 — now until finals?
I'd like to be optimistic here.
I'd like to think that this change in the way we play has been strategic and developmental and that it will all come together in the end.
If you look at 2024 and 2025, when our transition game was up and going, it was genuinely incredibly difficult to stop. It got us to a semi-final and a prelim and helped us beat elite teams.
Its biggest problem was that we didn't have enough midfield dominance. We didn't necessarily need to win centre clearance every time, but if the opposition could win the ball from the middle and stop us from getting the game on our terms, we struggled.
So I actually think developing this midfield was completely logical.
But now maybe attempting to combine it with the old game?
A Hawthorn that can dominate centre clearance and stoppage when we need to, but if we don't win it, we're still capable of defending the opposition possession around centre half-back, forcing a turnover and launching that fast transition game, I think that would be incredibly difficult to play against because we'd have two different ways of controlling a game.
We could win the centre clearance and attack immediately (actually connecting it with our forward line)
Or we could lose it, defend the opposition's possession, force the turnover and attack from half-back. And then there’s that disconnected forward line where we seem to be playing our smalls/half-forwards much higher up the ground and rotating them through CBAs a lot more. I don't know whether that's because we're deliberately developing them as midfield options and therefore sacrificing some forward-half connection temporarily, or whether this is actually the structure we're planning to take into finals.
Because at times it really doesn't look connected. Gunston can be left pretty isolated inside 50 while our smaller forwards are further up the ground.
Against poor teams, that structure works because we have enough time and space to eventually create opportunities.
Against good teams who apply pressure, it seems to fall apart much more easily.
I don't have any coaching experience, so obviously take all of this with a grain of salt. I could be completely wrong and maybe this whole thing has just happened naturally because of injuries, personnel changes, confidence, skill errors or it hasn’t happened at all. But I find it hard to believe that the coaches have been completely blind to such a massive change in the way we play.
Sam keeps saying we're not a finished product and continues to highlight the clearance/midfield work even after a smashing.
So maybe this really is the plan.
Maybe Phase 1 was the old game with some improvements.
Maybe Phase 2 was deliberately sacrificing some transition in order to properly develop the midfield.
Maybe Phase 3 was getting the transition game back against easier opposition.
And maybe Phase 4 is supposed to be combining the two before finals. To be fair and disproving my own point, maybe we have no time before finals to fix it? Maybe that’s what made Brisbane so disappointing. If we can put it all together we can go deep into finals and go back to beating top sides. But if we can't connect the midfield and transition game, then we could end up with a team that has an elite midfield but has lost the game style that made us so dangerous against good teams in the first place.
Maybe I'm completely delusional and we're just not as good as I think we are, this could all be absolute yap.
But I genuinely want to know if anyone else has noticed this shift, because when I look at the stats and the eye test, it feels very real to me.