SOON after his appointment as Hawthorn captain at the start of 2008, Sam Mitchell was asked what sort of captain he would be.
The journalist was only halfway through the question before Mitchell cut him short, pleading for time to allow him to actually settle into the role. Without it, he would struggle to provide an honest answer.
So here we are in mid-2010 and Mitchell, 27, has been in the role for two-and-a-half seasons. In that time, on top of consolidating his role as one of the best midfielders in the game, a genius at stoppages, he felt the exhilaration of hoisting the premiership cup in the middle of the MCG, but had also had his worth publicly questioned by one of his club’s former greats.
The journalist was only halfway through the question before Mitchell cut him short, pleading for time to allow him to actually settle into the role. Without it, he would struggle to provide an honest answer.
So here we are in mid-2010 and Mitchell, 27, has been in the role for two-and-a-half seasons. In that time, on top of consolidating his role as one of the best midfielders in the game, a genius at stoppages, he felt the exhilaration of hoisting the premiership cup in the middle of the MCG, but had also had his worth publicly questioned by one of his club’s former greats.
The morning after Hawthorn's 47-point win over Adelaide last round (which squared the club’s win-loss ledger at 6-6), Mitchell considered the question again, this time happy to give an expansive answer.
“Well, it’s probably changed a bit,” he said. “Early on, I did a fair bit of stuff myself, but what I have really tried to do at the club is focus on developing some other leaders.
“Some of the other guys have stepped up and become a bit more confident in their own leadership roles. I’ve been able to hand over some of the responsibilities, as opposed to when I started out and wanted to do everything on my own.”
Mitchell replaced Richie Vandenberg as skipper. It is fair to say Vandenberg created a new doctrine at Hawthorn when it came to the captaincy. It was ruthlessly and unapologetically a team-first concept, to which Mitchell has truly bought in.
“What I’ve been good at as a captain is to find the right person to do the right job,” he said. That has meant identifying which players need a pat on the shoulder and focusing on others who might need a kick up the bum and, most importantly, which player should then deliver the message.
“I’ll find the right person, whereas in the past I probably tried to do it all by myself,” he said.
Hawthorn has a nine-player leadership group in 2010. It might seem a lot, but Mitchell said the system worked a treat.
“Nine can be a difficult number to manage, but it can also be a show of strength,” Mitchell said.
Read the full story in the round 12 edition of the AFL Record, available at all venues.
