Coleman medallist Tom Hawkins has allayed GF health fears by training

Champion Cats forward joined his teammates at training in Southport on Wednesday night after isolating for two days and undergoing a COVID-19 test.

The recovering Tom Hawkins stands and watches training at Southport Sharks. Picture: Sarah Reed

Coleman medallist Tom Hawkins has allayed fears about his fitness for the AFL grand final against Richmond by training with Geelong on Wednesday night on the Gold Coast.

The champion Cat was isolated from his teammates after developing a sore throat which disrupted his preparation for the decider to be held at The Gabba on Saturday night.

Hawkins withdrew from a media commitment on Monday, with Geelong citing a family commitment, but then missed group training on Tuesday at Southport.

But he trained well at the home ground of the Southport Sharks in what is a relief for the Cats and the competition more broadly.

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AFL chief executive Gillon McLachlan confirmed Hawkins had undergone a COVID-19 test, as per league protocols this year, after disclosing he felt unwell.

A positive test would have caused significant issues for Saturday’s grand final and the AFL boss felt some anxiety on learning of the ill Cat.

“Because I’ve overreacted and driven my guys mad (this year), they’ve stopped (alerting me about player illnesses). But I clicked on a website and saw it and was on the phone within half a second,” he told SEN.

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

“Having had a little app on my phone that’s got every result come through for the past hundred days, you do realise a lot of people get sniffles and sore throats every day that are not related to (COVID-19) and I’ve become a bit more (used to) it.”

It will also be a relief to Hawkins’s fellow Coleman medallist Jack Riewoldt.

Geelong spearhead Tom Hawkins. Picture: Sarah Reed

In an unusual season, the Tigers and Cats with their families are sharing a hub at the Royal Pines Resort and Riewoldt said he was speaking to Hawkins a day before he fell ill.

“I was a little bit worried. I heard the Tomahawk was in quarantine and I was standing in a swimming pool 24 hours ago with him, watching our girls swim,” he told AFL 360.

Dual-Geelong best-and-fairest Mark Blicavs, formerly an Olympic steeplechase hopeful, said all players had been advised to exercise caution when it came to their health this year.

“We are just encouraged if you are not feeling well, as the public is encouraged too, just to speak up and go into isolation. That is all it is,” he said.

“He will be fine. He is the ultimate professional. It would have been just a day off for him, to stay with his family, and just recover.”

Hawkins and Riewoldt, who has won three Coleman medals, will be among the players and coaches watching the weather forecast with some interest.

Thunderstorms are predicted in southeast Queensland over the next couple of days and there is the potential for showers on Saturday night, with the humidity likely to be high.

Earlier in the season, some coaches had attributed sloppy skills, congestion and low-scoring in part to the humidity in Queensland which made grounds slippery with dew at night.

Geelong coach Chris Scott, who spent his playing career in Brisbane, dismissed this as a myth.

Over the past month, it has not been a factor and the football played has been attractive. But should the weather bureau be correct, the conditions for key forwards will be testing.

“A few of the boys are keen surfers and they said it is going to be 10-foot waves down here, so I guess we have to watch that, but it will be fine,” Blicavs said.

Blicavs said Geelong must commit to aggressive, attacking football and back their skill and strength. “It is probably just not going into your shell.”