DELISTED Hawk Tom Phillips is hungry for another chance at AFL level, saying his best football is still ahead of him.
After being infamously moved on from Collingwood two years ago as part of the club's salary dump along with Adam Treloar and Jaidyn Stephenson, Phillips played all 22 games with Hawthorn in 2021 before a combination of form and injury saw him fall out of favour last season.
The 26-year-old played just four games, taking his career total to 115, before undergoing surgery to fix his posterior cruciate ligament late in the season.
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Speaking on AFL Trade Radio on Friday, Phillips said he was "upset and disappointed" after being delisted, but was now looking ahead to the future.
"I wasn't able to get the continuity and runs on the board this year … that was upsetting to reflect on, but it gave me an opportunity to look at being more mentally resilient," Phillips said.
"It's been a different challenge this year for sure.
"I've had to have a slightly different outlook and approach, not being able to play a heap of games and perform on the field, but having to turn my attention to getting myself right and building myself back up.
"For me it's getting my body right. The hunger and the fire is there."
Phillips, who made the All-Australian squad of 40 in 2018, is currently on an off-season holiday in the USA and said he would be back running within a month.
"I'm super clear looking back on what I have done and where my growth and improvement lies," he said.
"I'm really bullish about being able to get back to my best football given the opportunity."
