Inside Hawthorn’s 2024 rise: How Sam Mitchell’s team went from 0-5 to a finals threat in 10 weeks

Hawthorn has rallied from 0-5, producing a rapid rebuild which is fast becoming the envy of the AFL. JOSH BARNES breaks down how Sam Mitchell’s side went from wooden spoon danger to finals threat in 10 weeks.

One of the clearest signs of Hawthorn’s surprising resurgence comes from the golf course.

Instead of splitting over the bye weekend, a large group of momentum-riding Hawks stuck together for a golf trip.

And staff members have noticed the younger players approaching senior teammates asking them to have a hit on the links.

A midweek swing might seem small in comparison to the season-changing swing that has flipped a 0-5 start into a sniff of finals, but those inside the walls at Waverley have noticed the gap close between the senior pros and the youth.

It’s the extra sessions between Jack Gunston and Calsher Dear, or James Sicily and Josh Weddle, or Jarman Impey and Connor Macdonald that have led to some green shoots blooming quicker than expected in Hawthorn’s rebuild.

From 0-5, the Hawks have climbed intom finals contention. Picture: Steve Bell/Getty Images

Luke Breust has a collection of young forwards under his wing, including the precocious Nick Watson, and has been Hawthorn’s starting substitute in his last six matches, acting as a pseudo coach on the bench.

“It is just a really nice thing that we have got going on and a genuine investment in each other,” experienced club head of development Andy Collins said.

“We talk about players coaching players as well as coaches coaching players and the peer coaching that is occurring within the building is phenomenal.

“We have a really good culture. I really want to praise the culture of our footy club around learning. It’s very inclusive and very positive.”

Hawthorn’s 0-5 start was its worst opening to a season in 54 years – since a 0-7 beginning to the 1970 campaign.

TV crews zeroed in on head coach Sam Mitchell to paint a picture of a frustrated young coach and some of the same media showed Mitchell’s smile in recent weeks to point to a transformation in him since the wins started coming.

Always a ruthless competitor on game days Mitchell — unlike his team — hasn’t changed much mid-year.

Inevitably he got caught looking frustrated on losing gamedays but even amid the winless start the coach dedicated time early each week to list the favourite things he saw on field each game.

A blunt message to the playing group resulted in vice-captain Dylan Moore taking a rare step by declaring publicly after the round 5 loss to Gold Coast that “we need to do extras and we’ve made commitments to each other to do that”.

Sam Mitchell’s Hawks are on the charge. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Collins said there was a shift after the slow start to the year but the improvement seen since was more due to the gains over summer than any drastic changes.

“Definitely, the constant reflection and particularly the 0-5 start, if we continued to do exactly the same on the training track and the players continued to give the same output, there wasn’t going to be the progression we needed,” he said.

“It was heavily driven by the head coach himself. The need to get better was a clear message for the whole group, which included the coaches and the players.”

In charge of the training schedule, Brett Ratten reworked things slightly to make it easier for players to fit those extras in and they have jumped at the chance.

The jump has been stark in a number of younger players since round 6.

Macdonald’s ratings points have jumped 50 per cent, Weddle has leapt 20 per cent.

Lloyd Meek has claimed dibs on the No. 1 ruck role when fit and Moore himself exploded into All-Australian form over the last 10 weeks.

Calsher Dear was rushed into the side to fill a job as a key forward and has jumped at every ball in his area through his first seven matches.

Any questions about Gunston’s value on his return to Hawthorn after a year in Brisbane can be answered each week in his close work with Dear.

“Josh Weddle is playing really good footy but we have not seen anywhere near the limits of his capabilities,” Collins said.

“And same with Cam Mackenzie and Connor Macdonald. These young guys have quite a large amount of growth still in their game and the older players and the coaches have invested heavily in this group.”

Mabior Chol and Changkuoth Jiath enjoy a goal. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos via Getty Images

Much of Hawthorn’s improvement as a team in a stretch that has led to them winning five of their last six matches before Sunday’s meeting with West Coast has come on the defensive end.

Where the Hawks ranked 17th for points against up to round 8, they then ranked 2nd in the next six weeks as they played a finals-ready game built on pressure.

Across the whole season, Hawthorn is miles clear in ground ball gets differential, collecting on average 10.2 more a game than their opponents.

Of the last six teams to lead that stat in a season, five have played in at least a preliminary final that year.

This year’s resurgence has lifted the Hawks and provided plenty of hope for the fan base that the calculated rebuild is on track, but nobody at Waverley is tied to the results of the next three months.

A finals appearance would surely only help the youngsters grow but the eyes are still on the long term.

As much as they are in a hurry to get better, the Hawks know the premiership results they are after will take time.

And the developing list has more quality to come.

“We haven’t even seen Will McCabe yet. Or Bodie Ryan,” Collins said.