HAWTHORN veteran Shaun Burgoyne will enter the 2017 season unsure if it will be his last in the AFL.
The four-time premiership champion signed a one-year contract extension late this season for next year but at age 34, he is refusing to look beyond that time.
"I've got another year to go and I'll take it one year at a time, being my age. I'll finish here [at Hawthorn] which will be fantastic and whether that's this year coming or not, we'll just head into pre-season and games and deal with that stuff through the year," Burgoyne said from the Hawks' training camp at Mooloolaba on the Sunshine Coast.
"There was a lot of speculation throughout last year about the future of the older players so we'll deal with that probably the same way."
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There will be an extra reliance on Burgoyne's experience at the club this season, after the off-season departures of senior midfield pair Sam Mitchell and Jordan Lewis.
The 319-gamer remains a vital member of the Hawks' line-up, which will be aiming to again make the top four in 2017 and challenge for another premiership.
"We'll sit down and set our goals, and our goals for the last few years have always been to finish in the top four and we reassess from there," Burgoyne said.
"It gives you the best chance of success but it's a long, long way from now so we'll get through this training block and look forward to the pre-season competition and reassess from there.
"Long term we'd like to finish in the top four but pre-season is the main focus at the moment."
The Hawks' active exchange period – they acquired Jaeger O'Meara, Tom Mitchell and Tyrone Vickery – will make them one of the most interesting sides to follow in 2017 as they look to regenerate their list while still competing for a flag.
Burgoyne said the Hawks' "tough" training camp in the Queensland heat would give the club a great fitness base in a key part of its pre-season.
"That's one of the things where we come up and train in the heat and put the body under real stress. Our program steps up as well so the intensity lifts, and it's a good time to come away and bond with the group as well," he said.
"We get as fit as possible in this week-and-a-bit we're up here and we back off a bit over the break then come back after Christmas and get back into it."
