Hawthorn mid-season report card: Hawks have fallen hard amid trade failures and injuries

THE end of Hawthorn’s successful era was inevitable but the plummet came harder than expected as trade failures and injuries left them exposed, but Tom Mitchell has been the exception.

THE bigger they are, the ­harder they fall.

And there can be no doubt Hawthorn has fallen as hard as any club.

But when you’ve won three straight flags, played in four consecutive Grand Finals, and a semi-final after that, perhaps this is the inevitable plummet.

Maybe this is the medicine all successful clubs have to swallow, but if you’re of the brown and gold persuasion, you take it with a smile knowing your side was one of the best there has ever been.

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However, that doesn’t stop us assessing the fallout and the question of how Hawthorn mounts another challenge and, most intriguingly, what road it takes to do it.

The list of what’s gone wrong would run beyond the space in the paper we’re ­allowed.

In short, Ty Vickery hasn’t been able to fill the void left by David Hale; time has caught up with Josh Gibson; and Jaeger O’Meara has — so far — not been worth the ­investment. Luke Hodge, while solid, is no certainty to play on.

Tom Mitchell has been one of the few positives for the Hawks. Picture: Michael Klein

Paul Puopolo and Jack Gunston have been shadows of the players they were.

Injuries have hit hard. Cyril Rioli (knee) may not be seen again this season; Grant Birchall (knee), James Frawley (turf toe) and Ben Stratton (knee) have all missed games; and Jonathon Ceglar (knee) has been sorely missed.

The underbelly has been exposed and when those players haven’t been able to break into a wildly successful side for years, we can’t be surprised if they aren’t ready to shoulder the load.

Ryan Burton is an exciting prospect and the Hawks’ best young player by a mile, but it falls away quickly after that.

Ryan Schoenmakers continues to struggle, Billy Hartung hasn’t come on and Jack Fitzpatrick can’t get a clean run at it.

Then there’s the coach. Alastair Clarkson hasn’t been under this level of stress in a long time. He’s lashed out about “disgraceful umpiring” and “catastrophic change”.

Jaeger O’Meara has struggled to get out on the field. Picture: Michael Klein

Will inevitable approaches from rival clubs tempt him? Does he have the patience to do what he did in 2004 and rebuild the side? Does Clarkson even view this as a rebuild?

What the Hawks do next could define the club for the next decade. Do they stay on the quickest, but riskiest road: free agency? Or do they go back to the draft? If free ­agency is an autobahn filled with potholes, the draft is the 40km/h suburban street with traffic lights and roundabouts.

Yet for all the high-profile trade and free-agency acquisitions, the draft was the foundation for the most successful era this club has known.

The only problem with that is the Hawks’ first-round pick, currently No.2, is with St Kilda courtesy of the “sell the farm’’ approach to landing O’Meara.

ROBBO SAYS

The rebuild is on in earnest. Will see more kids over the coming 11 weeks because, at 4-8 after 12 rounds, there’s no point not giving them game time.

It’s almost irrelevant to talk about who they beat and who beat them, although the performance in Sydney was memorable.

The real concern is that outside of Burton we really don’t know if the youngsters can play a high level, there’s issues with O’Meara’s knee and St Kilda will get their first pick in the draft.

The good news is Clarkson has told the club he’s not going anywhere.

SEASON SNAPSHOT

POSITION: 17th

WINS: 4

LOSSES: 8

PERCENTAGE: 76.9%

A CLOSER LOOK

THE STAR: TOM MITCHELL

Amid all the conjecture about the club’s off-season acquisitions, Mitchell has more than lived up to his end of the bargain. Averages more than 35 disposals a game — No.1 in the AFL — and ranks seventh in the comp for contested possessions a game.

SURPRISE PACKET: RYAN BURTON

His breakout season has justified him inheriting Sam Mitchell’s No.5 guernsey. Athletic, composed and with sound disposal, he was the Round 2 Rising Star nominee and will only get better. Learning the ropes in defence but could end up anywhere.

GONE BACKWARDS: JACK GUNSTON

Kicked 51 goals in 2016, but had managed only 10 in 11 games before Saturday’s bag of five against Gold Coast. Has he been out of form or a victim of the malaise up the ground? Is he a player who’s great in great sides, but poor in poor ones?

Ryan Burton has had a breakout year. Picture: AAP

TRADING PLACES

COMING?

Hard to see what the Hawks can barter with after giving away so much last year. They are keen on Gold Coast defender Steven May but he looks likely to re-sign with the Suns. Fremantle star Nat Fyfe could be a possible free agent target after St Kilda went cold on him.

GOING?

Alastair Clarkson was adament that Jack Gunston and Paul Puopolo won’t be traded, but expect the speculation to persist throughout the year.

THE STORY SO FAR

R1: L25 Essendon

R2: L24 Adelaide

R3: L 86 Gold Coast

R4: L86 Geelong

R5: W50 West Coast

R6: L75 St Kilda

R7: W3 Melbourne

R8: W38 Brisbane

R9: L18 Collingwood

R10: W6 Sydney

R11: L51 Port Adelaide

R12: L16 Gold Coast

RUN HOME

R14: Adelaide AO

R15: Collingwood MCG

R16: GWS Launceston

R17: Geelong MCG

R18: Fremantle S

R19: Sydney MCG

R20: Richmond MCG

R21: ES Launceston

R22: Carlton ES

R23: Western Bulldogs ES

FINALS ANALYSIS

Odds for eight: $26

Odds for flag: $501

Well, a flag tilt is certainly out of the question. Although, there may be a few Hawk diehards - and we all know a few - may be tempted byt the $26 on offer for Hawthorn to sneak into the eight.

LEADERS OF THE PACK

SUPERCOACH POINTS

Tom Mitchell 116

Ben McEvoy 94

Luke Hodge 92

Shaun Burgoyne 83

Ryan Burton 83

DISPOSALS

Tom Mitchell 35.2

Luke Hodge 24.7

Isaac Smith 22.9

Ricky Henderson 22.7

Billy Hartung 21.6

KICK RATING

Ben McEvoy +8.2%

Ben Stratton +7.5%

Jarryd Roughead +7.4%

Cyril Rioli +6.9%

James Frawley +6.7%

CONTESTED POSSESSIONS

Tom Mitchell 14.4

Will Langford 9.4

Shaun Burgoyne 8.8

Liam Shiels 8.4

Jarryd Roughead 8.4

UNCONTESTED POSSESSIONS

Tom Mitchell 21.5

Billy Hartung 18.8

Luke Hodge 17.3

Ricky Henderson 17.1

Isaac Smith 17.0

METRES GAINED

Isaac Smith 487

Billy Hartung 435

Ryan Burton 396

Ricky Henderson 358

Luke Hodge 353

INTERCEPT POSSESSIONS

Kaiden Brand 6.9

Ryan Burton 6.1

Luke Hodge 6.0

Ben Stratton 4.6

James Frawley 4.2

SCORE INVOLVEMENTS

Tom Mitchell 6.6

Jarryd Roughead 6.6

Luke Breust 5.6

Shaun Burgoyne 5.3

Jack Gunston 5.3

GOALS

Luke Breust 19

Jarryd Roughead 19

Jack Gunston 15

Paul Puopolo 12

James Sicily 11