Hawthorn’s immediate and medium-term future looms as challenging, writes Mark Robinson

THE Hawks are in uncharted territory. It’s certainly been a painful start to the season and things might not improve for a while yet, writes Mark Robinson.

Just how good are Hawthorn’s kids like Ryan Burton? Picture: Wayne Ludbey

IN May last year, with Hawthorn 4-2 and on the way to a 6-2 start, Jason Dunstall said they couldn’t win the flag.

No one believed him.

This week, Dunstall said his beloved Hawks were in for a “tough year”.

Best if everyone believes him.

The Hawks era is not only over, but the immediate and medium-term future looms as challenging.

It’s certainly been a painful start to the season.

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The fact that club legend Luke Hodge was at odds with his club, enduring a leadership group-led suspension, tells us immense change is upon us.

Hodge was filthy with the decision and was even more pointed later when he said, if he was the same position again, he’d again skip training.

Clearly it was a serious personal issue for Hodge to be so firm in his stance, but at the same time it was a slap to Jarryd Roughead and the new regime.

Roughead, the new skipper, had every right to wonder if Hodge was/is fully clocked on.

Luke Hodge missed Round 1 through a club imposed suspension. Picture:Wayne Ludbey

Bare in mind Hodge has forsaken the captaincy, lost two premiership comrades in Sam Mitchell and Jordan Lewis and probably began thinking about life post-footy a year ago. Add that he’s 33 in June, his body needs enormous attention to play each week and he’s coming off a suspension put on him by teammates he led unconditionally and peerlessly into football battle.

Put another way, could you imagine Brisbane suspending Michael Voss, or Collingwood Nathan Buckley or Adelaide Mark Ricciuto, or Carlton Chris Judd for missing training and not “communicating’’ properly?

Hodge set the example on the field for a decade and was made to be the example off the field for one morning’s misdemeanor. No wonder he was peeved.

Still, no one should doubt Hodge the footballer. He’s been a warrior for 14 years, and any residual anguish from his suspension will be funnelled into his performance on Saturday.

The other cause for concern was Hawthorn’s first-round capitulation.

Part of Essendon’s plan was to spread the Hawks for their lack of run and deny the Hawks the ball.

The Bombers out-played Hawthorn how the Hawks usually out-play everyone else and that was with high pressure and controlling the outside game.

It was the second lowest pressure Hawthorn has recorded in a game since pressure was recorded in 2012 and the second most uncontested marks they have conceded since 2009.

The Bombers had a game plan and other teams will study it.

Of course, Al Clarkson will make adjustments — or changes to the line-up which he has done for Saturday — but there is now a reference point for all Hawks opponents.

The Bombers also exploited Hawthorn defensively, some of which was simply dragging Hawks players to man the mark. They believed — and were proven right — that without Hodge, Mitchell and Lewis, there would be an organisational deficiency in defence.

Clarkson has been criticised for giving away his two champs, but he shouldn’t be, because he saw what was coming.

Against the Bombers, the Hawks fielded the second oldest team in the competition while Melbourne, for example, fielded the second-youngest team.

Of Clarkson’s personnel, Hodge has one season left, Shaun Burgoyne is 34, Josh Gibson has slipped alarmingly, Grant Birchall is not the player he was, Mitchell and Lewis are gone and Brad Hill, while windy did supply run.

That group needs replacing and that’s where the Hawks face major concerns.

Hawthorn’s magnificence in recent seasons has meant access to good young talent in the draft has been minimal.

Since 2010, only Isaac Smith and Paul Puopolo can be marked as a tick.

Of the five drafts since, there’s real optimism for Ryan Burton (pick 19, 2015) who has been selected for Saturday, but questions remain about the rest.

Alastair Clarkson faces a tough 2017. Picture: Getty Images

Forward James Sicily has talent, but he was axed this week and Billy Hartung followed Sicily with the bad news.

But what is the future, for example, for players such Tim O’Brien (18 games), Daniel Howe (15 games) and Marc Pittonet (three games)?

Hawthorn’s list of under-24 players has, according to Champion Data, just one player rated above average. That’s recruit Tom Mitchell.

Jaeger O’Meara was the other gun recruit, but he can’t be classified because of his lack of playing time in the past two years.

But Sicily is rated average, four players are rated below average — Hartung, Howe, O’Brien and Kaiden Brand — and the rest are unclassified.

The point is Hawthorn is still old with Mitchell and Lewis gone, the kids are largely unknown and the young-ish players we have seen are OK without threatening to be stars.

Trading has meant Hawthorn’s draftees in 2016 were taken at picks 74 and 76 and they have traded away their first-round pick in the 2017 national draft.

In fact, their first pick in this year’s draft is GWS’s second-round pick which they received on the final day of trade week in the O’Meara deal.

How good can Jaeger O’Meara be for the Hawks? Picture: George Salpigtidis

If the Giants win the flag, that number will be about pick 38.

Naturally, Clarkson is more aware of the situation than anyone.

He brought back Hodge and picked Burton (four games), Kade Stewart (three games) and debutant Teia Miles. Whilst some of the selection is a statement after last week’s performance, it’s also the opportunity to find out who of the kids have got that something.

Being Hawthorn, and still enriched with superstars, they could be beat Adelaide on Saturday.

But if they don’t, there’s no reason to point the finger.

Football has changed awfully quickly at Hawthorn, just ask Hodgey.