HAWTHORN has suffered a massive blow ahead of Friday night's clash against Richmond, with star midfielder Sam Mitchell a late withdrawal due to injury.
Hawthorn football operations manager Chris Fagan said Mitchell had been ruled out with "some soreness with a corked calf", with last week's debutant Kieran Lovell coming back into the Hawks' 22.
Richmond has made no changes to its team for Friday night's crucial game.
The loss of Mitchell compounds a bad week on the injury front for the reigning premier, with captain Luke Hodge (knee) and James Frawley (concussion) earlier ruled out.
The Tigers will be without their skipper Trent Cotchin (fractured cheekbone) and key defender Alex Rance (suspension).
Mitchell has been far and away Hawthorn's most dependable midfielder in 2016, with the former skipper averaging nearly 34 possessions a game across the first six rounds.
His absence will be a boost for the Tigers as they try to notch their first win since the round one victory over Carlton.
