Hawks midfielder, Brad Sewell, is excited by the road ahead, and sharing it with a few mates. Growing up in football is a team task at Hawthorn.
Hawks star midfielder, Brad Sewell, is confident season 2007 is just the tip of an ever growing iceberg, as coach Alastair Clarkson’s young Hawks continue to develop a strong team culture under his stewardship.
In his third season in charge at the Hawks, Clarkson’s reputation is growing, as his blend of young talent and the mature hard-bodies of Shane Crawford, Joel Smith, Richie Vandenberg and Ben Dixon have provided Hawthorn fans plenty to talk about this season.
Wins over Geelong and last season’s premiers, West Coast, at Aurora Stadium in Rounds 4 and 9 respectively, sounded a shot to the AFL that Clarkson’s young guns were maturing – and able to mix it with and beat the best.
It was in that game that Sewell’s AFL reputation grew another notch. However, his work rate and importance to the Hawks midfield had been something long recognised within the Club, with a solid 2005 season and an outstanding 2006, and was being backed up with a powerful start to 2007.
In the West Coast game an early Sewell tackle on his opponent for the day, Chris Judd, saw the Hawks grow in confidence and secure an important win for a group of players whose belief in themselves was on the up.
It was also an important moment for Sewell, who matched it and at times out-competed it with the best midfielder in the AFL.
“I remember it well - the Judd tackle against the Eagles in Tassie. It was early in the game and really helped set the scene for the day and we came away with a great win,” said Sewell.
However, Sewell is quick to recognise the contribution of those around him and went on to say, “Changa (Chance Bateman) closed him down well and put on the additional pressure – then I laid the tackle from behind.”
Clarkson’s Hawks have shown great maturity this season, given that the Club has the youngest list in the AFL. By showing faith in the young list, Sewell believes that the team is responding well, and learning a lot from each other, as they learn together how to compete and create a winning culture.
“This season the boys have developed as a group. We spoke earlier in the season about getting a certain amount of games into the young guys so that they can make their mark at this level. As a team we are really starting to feel that we are all at this level, and we are all growing at the same rate and learning together.
“When everyone is growing up together in their football, and going through the same issues together, it tends to make the group a bit stronger.”
Hawks star midfielder, Brad Sewell, is confident season 2007 is just the tip of an ever growing iceberg, as coach Alastair Clarkson’s young Hawks continue to develop a strong team culture under his stewardship.
In his third season in charge at the Hawks, Clarkson’s reputation is growing, as his blend of young talent and the mature hard-bodies of Shane Crawford, Joel Smith, Richie Vandenberg and Ben Dixon have provided Hawthorn fans plenty to talk about this season.
Wins over Geelong and last season’s premiers, West Coast, at Aurora Stadium in Rounds 4 and 9 respectively, sounded a shot to the AFL that Clarkson’s young guns were maturing – and able to mix it with and beat the best.
It was in that game that Sewell’s AFL reputation grew another notch. However, his work rate and importance to the Hawks midfield had been something long recognised within the Club, with a solid 2005 season and an outstanding 2006, and was being backed up with a powerful start to 2007.
In the West Coast game an early Sewell tackle on his opponent for the day, Chris Judd, saw the Hawks grow in confidence and secure an important win for a group of players whose belief in themselves was on the up.
It was also an important moment for Sewell, who matched it and at times out-competed it with the best midfielder in the AFL.
“I remember it well - the Judd tackle against the Eagles in Tassie. It was early in the game and really helped set the scene for the day and we came away with a great win,” said Sewell.
However, Sewell is quick to recognise the contribution of those around him and went on to say, “Changa (Chance Bateman) closed him down well and put on the additional pressure – then I laid the tackle from behind.”
Clarkson’s Hawks have shown great maturity this season, given that the Club has the youngest list in the AFL. By showing faith in the young list, Sewell believes that the team is responding well, and learning a lot from each other, as they learn together how to compete and create a winning culture.
“This season the boys have developed as a group. We spoke earlier in the season about getting a certain amount of games into the young guys so that they can make their mark at this level. As a team we are really starting to feel that we are all at this level, and we are all growing at the same rate and learning together.
“When everyone is growing up together in their football, and going through the same issues together, it tends to make the group a bit stronger.”
