If Alastair Clarkson was asking himself hard questions after Hawthorn’s narrow, Round 8 loss to Sydney, last Sunday would have inflicted a particularly dark night of the soul.
After the Hawks had the early running against previously winless Brisbane, the Lions kicked 19 goals to seven. The final margin of 56 points spoke of a belting but didn’t quite convey the extent of the disaster.
It was a day at the Gabba which brought to mind the best of spring in Melbourne. The sort of day on which the Hawks recently won grand finals.
Only, now, they looked too old, too slow, and no longer too good.
Too old? After recently casting off Sam Mitchell, Jordan Lewis, Josh Gibson, and Luke Hodge?
Yes. This is what happens to great teams in modern football’s environment of regulated recruitment and player-payment restriction. A club hangs on for a third flag, then a tilt at history by winning a fourth, and…
Bingo!
No, not the fourth flag! Rather, a list suddenly over the edge. As Clarkson’s Hawthorn courageously and creatively sought to rejuvenate their playing personnel, other premiership survivors continued to age.
So: Shaun Burgoyne is now closer to 40 than 30. Jarryd Roughead is 31, Paul Puopolo 30. Isaac Smith, Ben Stratton, and Ricky Henderson will be 30 before another season has ticked around. Cyril Rioli – who the Hawks desperately need back, fit and strong – turns 30 next year. Grant Birchall, already a tricenarian, can’t get on the park.
AAP Image/Joe Castro
You can see why Clarkson and his list-management team felt compelled to take the hard decisions. Sam Mitchell is a few days older than Burgoyne. Hodge – while a good player on Sunday – is three weeks short of his 34th. And Lewis is showing signs of decline with Melbourne.
Meanwhile, Hawthorn lost its best runner, Brad Hill, to Fremantle and perhaps made a blue in letting Billy Hartung go. The Hawks are now capable of being embarrassed by clubs employing quick ball movement and youthful leg-speed.
Just beyond the halfway mark of last season, they were 17th on the ladder with four wins from 12 outings. One veteran of the media gallery with Hawthorn leanings murmured darkly to me of a wooden spoon.
Yet, somehow, Clarkson revived them. Four rounds out from the finals they were a chance to again be there. Only a Round 20 loss to Richmond – about whom we were soon to learn more – derailed the ambition.
A miraculous reboot, guided by the master-coach, seemed to be happening before our eyes. A 5-2 start to the new season was confirmation. It looked like 6-2 before the Swans conjured the last three goals that Friday night at the MCG. And perhaps Clarkson sensed what had just slipped through his group’s collective fingers.
If supporters have an instinct as to how the team might go on a given day, imagine what goes on in a coach’s psyche. When the modern-day maestro suddenly began airing his uncertainties in an extended radio interview on 3AW, perhaps it was his unconscious talking. To those of us listening, it seemed extraordinary. His team had been but ten minutes from outright third on the table. To get there, they’d convincingly beaten Melbourne and Collingwood, edged Geelong, and were so close to beating the Swans.
Now, just over a week later, they’re out of the eight, with a season-defining run of matches against West Coast, Port Adelaide, and Adelaide ahead.
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We’re about to learn a lot about the post-juggernaut Hawks. And perhaps about whether, indeed, Clarkson continues to be the man to lead them into the longer-term. If it’s true what they say of sports people – that when they start thinking about retirement, they are retired – this is a period to watch the Hawks more closely than ever.
The questions bank up. Just why did Clarkson speak as he did after the Sydney game? Has something in his connection to Hawthorn died, as has happened at some time between every coach and his club since Jock McHale? Does he need a new challenge? Is it that Clarkson might be wooed elsewhere? Could it, as has been suggested, be to the AFL’s love-child club, Greater Western Sydney?
Of most immediate curiosity is the matter of how such musings might affect the connection between a coach and his playing group. Does it put the players in a similar state of uncertainty as that of us, the speculators? If so… what happens next?
All this is to play out. It’s a compelling moment. The greatest modern coach is wondering. And in doing so, he has the rest of us wondering with him.
Col in paradise
Guest
He would need to attract 22 players to have a chance !!!
mdso
Guest
Clarko come to Essendon. Now there's a challenge.
User
Roar Rookie
Not salty Paul, when top of the ladder no reason to be salty. Just an observation which is more on how people on here react. Sicily is pretty much thought of as a annoying Tuesday so people applaud dangerous play by Robinson. An observation which considering yourself, AD and IAP are quite humoured by this is definetly a interesting character study on the human condition.
Paul D
Roar Guru
It is. Your problem is that your boy nicnat didn’t make any effort to disguise what he was doing. I love when fans get salty that someone else didn’t get suspended for what one of their players did. Impotent rage is the best kind of rage for spectators
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
If only they could search for the lost time to sign Pruess.
Paul D
Roar Guru
The CEO who signed Blight later turned out to be an alcoholic and a drug addict. Was at the time he signed him too.
User
Roar Rookie
Driving a blokes head into the turf? I learnt a few weeks back that was suspension.
User
Roar Rookie
Absolutely, even though he is out atm and won't leave Sean Darcy is the player I'd chase if I was gws, or if they want to go short term try and tempt sandilands for a couple of seasons. Medium term Scott lycett. None of those three will go there but all three really make sense when combined with gws possibly finite midfield strength imho.
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
It is the great unknown in the equation, who is going to stay? It's a constant to have other clubs sniffing around their players, who're egged on by the Vic media. What they really need is a competitive beast of a bull ruckman, it'd be transformational. They should make that a priority of their next trading period.
BigAl
Guest
Blight never really wanted to coach St Kilda ! This was painfully obvious to a few just before he signed, and many, many more just after he signed. It was yet another example of culturally embeded management incompetence at St Kilda.
User
Roar Rookie
Nothing, freo fans would enjoy it but wce would remain in the top two and come home and face st kilda. So yes its a game that is 50/50 in many ways but won't be damaging if a loss happened. Now if we dropped one of the games we've played against the lower place sides(Carlton, bullies, gcs or freo) that would be a headline changing concern.
Harsh Truth Harry
Roar Rookie
That was big Harry made that astute observation last year champ! Seems the big fella was right again Brisvegas!
Mango Jack
Roar Guru
The AFL will persist with GWS because they should. If they bail out in the next couple of years it will be a complete waste of money and effort. The Swans showed how hard it is to establish an AFL club in Sydney. A flag or two would help, of course, but the Giants won't be completely established in western Sydney for another 5-10 years.
Mango Jack
Roar Guru
Get Freo or GWS over the line for their first flag, that would be memorable as a coach. Forget the Suns, even Clarkson can't help them.
The Brazilian
Roar Rookie
You're very angry today. Take a chill pill. Truth is I'm sick of the same people heaping grief on Carlton day in, day out. The Blues are an easy target. Time will validate whether you or Tom are right. The same questions you ask of Tom could be asked of you. Still just an opinion, dude.
Paul D
Roar Guru
They could lose any of Shiel, Patton, Cameron, Lobb, Coniglio, Kelly or Whitfield. None of them are contracted past 2020. That's the unknown, how many they will keep. Again - academies are very important for a club like GWS because it keeps the local talent rolling through and makes them less vulnerable to these sort of mid-life crisis player exoduses that might occur.
Peter the Scribe
Roar Guru
When you rattled off the blue chip names, the first thought is why has this side not already won the flag? This year, they have an excuse with injuries but with those names they should have had one already.
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
It was a totally natural falling motion.
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
GWS have their biggest stocks in the 24-28 y.o. playing group, the largest in this group in the comp, which also includes much of their blue-chip brigade in Ward (28), Davis (28), Scully (27), Shiel (25), Patton (25), Cameron (25), Lobb (25), Greene (24), Coniglio (24). They are a bit lighter on in the 21-23 bracket, but a lot of quality there Kelly (23), Whitfield (23), Williams (23), Finlayson (22), Hopper (21). The under 21's include gems like Taranto (20), Setterfield (20) and likely Bonar (19). There's plenty to go on with there and hardly likely to drop off any cliffs. the also have a comparatively modest number of players in the 29+ age category, Lions having the lowest in 3, while the highest of 8 is located at Hawthorn and Collingwood. --------------------------------------0-20 yrs ---- 21-23 yrs ---- 24-28 yrs ---- 29-36 yrs Greater Western Sydney ----- 11 ------------- 8 -------------- 20 -------------- 5
Dalgety Carrington
Roar Guru
It's an interesting quirk what would happen to the speculation in the two headline articles here today, should the Hawks wallop the WC this weekend.