HAWTHORN star Chance Bateman says homesickness among young footballers is becoming less of a problem with better management.

On the eve of his 100th AFL game, the West Australian says he knows better than most the troubles that can come with moving to the other side of the country when you are a teenager.

“It’s not just the indigenous kids, I think it’s all kids,” Bateman said on Monday.

“You get picked up and taken away from your surroundings and what you’re comfortable with. Most clubs now have got really good player development managers ... transition now is probably a bit easier than it was decades ago.”

Bateman had some well-publicised homesickness in 2001 when his sister Candace passed away and said at the time he wanted nothing more than to be in Perth where he could be close to the people that mattered most in his life.

“When I was back home for my sister’s funeral, I spent three or four weeks there and during that time I thought I wanted to be back home close to family and friends,” he said.

“I asked to be traded to West Coast or Freo and nothing came of it. When that happened I thought I’d get back into Melbourne and get back into it and I just want to be a one-club player.”

Bateman says he is pleased the club now has some talented young indigenous players like Cameron Stokes and Cyril Rioli and says he is mindful that they could get homesick as they adjust to Melbourne life.

“My advice to those boys is that you’ve always got chances throughout the year to go home and see family and friends,” he said.

“Just to get around your club and teammates as much as you can. You feel more at home the longer you stay here.

“At Hawthorn we haven’t had a history of a lot of indigenous players around the place. It’s nice to pick up a few along the way and they’re going to be great long-term players for the club.”

Bateman said he was looking to reaching his milestone in this week’s game against Adelaide at Aurora Stadium.

“It definitely feels like a home away from home for us,” he said.

“We love the support we get down there and the ground is one of the best surfaces in the AFL. We’ve got as pretty good routine travelling down there and we’d definitely look at it as an advantage.”