GEELONG legend Tom Hawkins has announced he will retire from the AFL at the end of the season, with the Cats great set to finish his career ranked in the top 15 for games played and goals kicked at VFL/AFL level.
Hawkins has not played since round 15 due to a foot injury and confirmed on Tuesday that his 18-season career will come to an end when the Cats' 2024 campaign concludes.
The 36-year-old will retire as one of the greatest players in the game's history. To date, he has played 359 career games (15th most in history) and kicked 796 goals (13th most in history).
A three-time premiership player (2009, '11, '22) and a Coleman Medal winner in 2020, he earned All-Australian selection five times, including being named skipper in 2022.
He holds the club record for most games played and is second behind Gary Ablett snr for most goals at Geelong, while he won the club best and fairest in 2012 and led the Cats for goalkicking on 11 occasions.
Hawkins is nearing a return from a foot injury and is hoping he can still play a key role in the Cats' push towards another finals campaign.
"I'm really optimistic that I can come back and have an impact," said Hawkins, who fronted a packed press conference in front of friends, family and teammates in Geelong.
"I've got a bit of a plan that I need to keep working through with certain people in the footy club.
"For the whole process and the specific injury itself, I haven't tried to look too far ahead.
"There's always that little bit of unknown when you're trying to reload your feet as a key position, heavy player.
"But I'm quietly confident with what's ahead."
Hawkins is a third-generation Cats player, following in the footsteps of his maternal grandfather Fred Le Deux and father Jack Hawkins.
He was taken by the Cats with pick No.41 in the 2006 draft under the father-son rule, debuting in round two the following year and kicking three goals in a 78-point victory against Carlton.
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After a coming-of-age finals series in 2011, Hawkins cemented his spot as the Cats' spearhead, and won the club's leading goalkicker award every year from 2012-2022.
Applauded for his selflessness, Hawkins has also dished off 296 goal assists over his career and had 2,011 score involvements since 2012.
Geelong footy manager Andrew Mackie, a teammate of Hawkins' from 2007-2017, celebrated his enormous contribution to the club both on the field and off it.
"Tom has been an incredible presence both on and off the field at Geelong for the past 18 years, with his ability to play consistently at an elite level, along with humility and care for his teammates, trademarks of his career," Mackie said.
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"He is a generational player who will rightly be celebrated for his achievements on field, as well as the role he has played shaping our club into what it is today.
"We thank Tom, his wife Emma, and their children Arabella, Primrose and Henry for all they've given our club."
Hawkins didn't rule out continuing to be involved in football post-retirement, but was looking forward to watching the Cats with wife Emma, and children Arabella, Primrose and Henry in the new stand at GMHBA Stadium named after Selwood.
"I didn't need much convincing to join the Cats," he said.
"It was a pretty easy decision and they've been very good to me ever since."
Chris Scott has been Geelong coach for all but four of Hawkins' seasons in the AFL.
Hawkins came of age when he put in a stunning Grand Final performance in 2011 against Collingwood to make Scott a premiership coach in his first season in charge.
"We will all tell our grandkids, hopefully, one day that we got the chance to either play with, or coach Tom Hawkins," Scott said on Tuesday.
"Just to say you had chance to know who he was.
"Everyone will be able to look back on the vision and see his great feats on the field, but not many will have had the privilege to have seen him up close and the way he goes about it.
"One thing we know for sure is he's going to be one of the all-time greats of the Geelong footy club."
