AFL: Geelong star Tom Hawkins tests negative for COVID-19 after being isolated from teammates

Geelong star Tom Hawkins tests negative for COVID-19 after being isolated from teammates with a sore throat ahead of Saturday’s AFL Grand Final

AFL boss Gillon McLachlan took a huge gulp when he found out star Geelong forward Tom Hawkins missed training with a sore throat.

But the big Cat has been cleared of COVID-19, is fully expected to train at Wednesday’s main session and take his place in Saturday’s Grand Final showdown with Richmond.

Hawkins was isolated from his Grand Finalist teammates on Tuesday with a sore throat, which, when McLachlon found out, was a shock almost too big to take.

McLachlan says he gets daily COVID-19 tests on his phone, but paid extra attention this week

“Because I’ve overreacted ... my guys have stopped doing it (texting me),” McLachlan said on SEN on Wednesday morning.

“But I clicked on a website and saw it was online in about half a second, I was like ‘Jesus’.

“They were calming me down, saying he just had a sore throat, was sure it was from the kids, and he’d been tested.

“I’ve got a little app on my phone that’s got the results (from the AFL’s COVID testing) come through every morning for hundreds of days, you do realise a lot of people get the sniffles and sore throats every day ... I’ve become a bit more sanguine about it.

The AFL chief revealed Hawkins tested negative to COVID-19 on Tuesday night.

“I don’t know if I should have told that ... things get out, but people having runny noses every day .. you get used to it, that’s life,” McLachlan said.

Hawkins missed a press conference on Monday then Geelong training session on Tuesday after being isolated because of illness.

Star teammate Patrick Dangerfield said he had no worries about Hawkins’ condition.

“I haven’t seen him today but I’m not too concerned, it might have been a bit overblown,” Dangerfield said.

“Our main session is tomorrow night (Wednesday) and I’m sure he’ll be out there.”