Forward scout: Hawk's eye view
lions.com.au takes an at-a-glance look at Hawthorn ahead of round one
Not sure which Hawks the Lions have to watch out for on Saturday night at the Gabba? lions.com.au takes an at-a-glance look at Hawthorn ahead of round one.THE CLUBFormed: 1902Joined AFL: 1925Premierships: Nine, most recently 1991Last finals appearance: 2001, preliminary final2006 AT A GLANCEWon four of their first five games, knocking off highly-rated Geelong and Fremantle. The Hawks also won their final four matches of the season, with the Cats again among the victims. In between there were some testing times for a young side - two losing runs of six games either side of a Round 12 win over Richmond - but plenty of encouraging signs for the future. A 9-13 record saw them finish 11th, two spots above the Lions.SUMMER 2007Hawthorn started the 2007 NAB Cup in fine fashion, a barnstorming last quarter helping lift them to a 24-point win over Melbourne. The Hawks trailed by 12 points at three-quarter time but finished all over the top of the Demons, with Lance Franklin kicking three of his five goals in the final term. Thereafter, things turned a bit pear-shaped for the boys in brown-and-gold, with a seven-point Round 2 loss to Carlton followed by a 21-point regional challenge defeat at the hands of Fremantle - a match in which star midfielder Shane Crawford was reported and subsequently suspended. Crawford was also reported, along with Luke Hodge, as the Hawks rounded out their pre-season with a 10-point loss at the hands of Essendon. Fortunately for Hawthorn fans, Hodge was cleared and is free to face the Lions on Saturday night.THE COACHIn charge at Hawthorn for the past two years, former Kangaroo and DemonAlastair Clarkson has compiled a 14-30 record - not fantastic from awin-loss perspective but acceptable given the re-building phase the Hawks are in. Clarkson won a two-year contract extension in the middle of 2006 and will be hoping his developing youngsters can pick up where they left off last year.MISSING IN ACTIONHawthorn's latest injury list consists of only four players - but two of them, skipper Richie Vandenberg and veteran defender Joel Smith would be considered automatic first-choice 22 selections. Both are likely to miss the first month or so of the season and thus won't play against the Lions on Saturday night. Draftee Mitch Thorp (No. 6 in last year's National Draft) is the only other Hawk set to miss, although Trent Croad, Danny Jacobs and Ben Dixon have all had limited pre-seasons geared at having them right for round one. Brownlow Medallist Shane Crawford is suspended.THE GUNThere was a time, not so long back, when Luke Hodge (No. 15) was best known as the player taken at No. 1 in the 2001 National Draft, while Chris Judd fell to West Coast at No. 3. Judd remains ahead of Hodge - many rate the star Eagle as the best player in the competition - but the Hawk has more than forged his own identity over the last couple of years. Was runner-up in Hawthorn's best-and-fairest in 2006 after winning it in 2005, a season in which he also earned All-Australian honours. Will share the captaincy with Sam Mitchell in Vandenberg's absence and possesses a thumping left-foot, which he uses frequently to drive the Hawks forward. At 184cm and 89kg, he also packs a physical punch, something Lions youngster Scott Harding can attest to after being floored by a Hodge bump at Carrara in Round 7 of last year.THE BOLTERMost Lions fans would be hard-put to pick Tim Boyle (No. 20) out in a line-up - then again, so might Hawthorn supporters, given he has only played five games since being drafted in 2002. He is, perhaps, best remembered as the unlucky Hawk who missed all of 2004 after breaking a leg while flying for a screamer in the final intra-club outing leading into Round 1 of that season. But the 194cm, 96kg key position prospect finally looks set to finally deliver on the promise he has always shown, following a very productive pre-season in which he booted three goals against both Fremantle and Carlton. Another lesser-known Hawk to catch the eye has been 200cm ruckman Simon Taylor (No. 13).STRENGTHSThe exuberance of youth. The Hawks have one of the most youthful and promising lists in the AFL, with 17 players having been selected in the last three national drafts. Low finishes in recent years means many of these youngsters have been high picks - in 2004 the Hawks had picks No. 2, 5, 7 and 21, in 2005 they had 3, 6, 14, 18 and 22 and last year they had 6 and 24. The No. 5 selection from 2004, the highly-rated Lance Franklin (No. 23), looks a chance of fulfilling his immense potential sometime soon, while his fellow up-and-comers should continue to grow into their roles.WEAKNESSESSee above. You can't field a team of kids and not give something away in the experience stakes. The Hawks will go into Saturday night's game against the Lions without their current captain, Vandenberg, their former captain, Crawford and the very seasoned Smith. In the shape of Croad, Jacobs and Dixon, Hawthorn still has a trio of well-versed campaigners.But there are invariably times when older and perhaps cooler heads prevail. And of the six Hawks who will be 27 or older in 2007, only three will be available on Saturday night.THE QUEENSLAND FACTORThe Hawks boast two Queensland products - 62-game veteran Michael Osborne(No. 7 - Labrador) and still-to-debut Southport big man Brent Renouf (No.34). Renouf, taken with the No. 24 pick of last year's National Draft, has impressed enough in the pre-season to be mentioned as a possible selection for Saturday night.The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the club
