Cricket
Racing
Rugby
League
Motorsport
Football
Golf
Combat Sports
Basketball
Tennis
Other Sports
Sport Nation
Mitchell’s message to his Hawthorn players ahead of Dogs win
Andrew Slevison • June 6th, 2025 1:45 pm
Hawthorn’s season roared back to life on Thursday night with an inspired 22-point win over the Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium.
The Hawks had copped three straight defeats ahead of their Round 13 clash with the Dogs and lost captain James Sicily (hip/abdominal), Nick Watson (illness) and Jack Scrimshaw (concussion) in the lead-up.
Late last weekend, the Hawks held a player-led meeting which was reported to be brutal and scathing, before coach Sam Mitchell spent time with a group of players down at the beach last Sunday night and Monday.
He reveals the messaging he had for his Hawks who had lost to the Suns on the Gold Coast and were then beaten comfortably by top two sides Brisbane and Collingwood.
“Trying to put it in perspective,” Mitchell said on SEN’s Fireball.
“We lost to Gold Coast up there by a kick and they hadn’t lost up there. We were reasonably pleased with that.
“We lost to the two top teams and they proved they were too good for us. But it gave us a bit of a snapshot of where we’re at.
“The answer is not quite there but not terrible.”
Mitchell said celebrating the small wins helped bring the vibe against the Dogs.
It led to an upbeat performance on what was a crucial night in the context of his side’s season which had started so brightly with seven wins from their first nine fixtures.
“You get to this period of the year and the getting up for every game becomes (hard), and it shouldn’t, it makes no rational sense,” he added.
“You’re playing AFL footy, you’re playing on Thursday night and (in front of) massive crowds. But every week you’re doing the same thing and sometimes you need to remember to bring the joy to what you do.
“Sometimes when you bring joy you bring it in different ways and I was making sure we were focused on bringing important things to help us win.
“It was a big part of our preparation for last night. I think it was a much better response in that area.”
It was well publicised that the Hawks were out-tackled 38-82 in the 51-point loss Collingwood last weekend. Last night they laid 82 tackles of their own which set the tone for the stirring win.
Did that subpar tackle count ever work its way into conversations?
“It certainly did,” Mitchell said.
“Tackles as a basic number I don’t think is something we follow too closely. But when you’ve had the blowouts we’ve had the last couple of weeks you can’t have a game where your team has in the 30s and the other team has in the 80s.
“So looking at it as a differential from the opposition is always something you keep a bit of an eye on. But a lot of general pressure out there is not tackles and that was the part of the game that we did close to our best last night.
“It was important because of the way they (the Dogs) play as well.”
Mitchell says the majority of the focus was to value the less tangible things and become more team-orientated as early-season pacesetters Collingwood are known for.
“The thing that always makes the difference is the genuine care and buy-in. I think the players really want to play well every week but sometimes being reminded of the things that really matter,” he said further.
“That’s what Collingwood are doing phenomenally well at the minute is they’re valuing things that maybe the TV cameras don’t find.
“Rather than the stat sheet they’re valuing things that create goals and stop goals. Sometimes those things aren’t as pretty. When you can have a genuine buy-in to those things, getting that to last as long as possible is a key motivating factor for the players.
“I thought the buy-in that they had for the detail of the game last night was first-class.”
The Hawks established themselves in sixth spot as a result of their eighth win of the season to date.
Jai Newcombe (27 disposals, 10 clearances), Jack Ginnivan (23 disposals, two goals), Josh Ward (28 disposals) and Mabior Chol (four goals) were among the very best for the Hawks.
They’ll next meet Adelaide in Launceston next Friday night.
