A challenging read, but have never been more solid in my belief that stripping away the figureheads was the best thing for the club. A lot of the more critical voices around the handover have been proven wrong, in my opinion, and I haven't been happier with the trajectory of the club in over a decade.
Sam Mitchell was cornered into rapidly turning over our list to the point where only 9 players from our Rd 23 2021 side are still at Hawthorn and only 7 played on the weekend just gone. He's managed to do that without handouts, while prioritising younger players and bringing the best footy possible out of them.
I often think about what could have happened and how long our peak could have been extended if we'd just kept hold of Jordan Lewis and Luke Hodge for a bit longer - Geelong's flag put paid to the belief that players over 30 need to be transitioned into retirement - but I can't help but be happy that things panned out the way they did, even if it meant some pain.
Clarkson needed to go, Kennett needed to go, Reeves needed to go. I'm glad we've moved on.
Just reflecting on it all, Mitchell has clearly done a great job from a strategy, development and game plan perspective, but if you consider the pressure he has been under from day 1 it has been a phenomenal effort for a rookie coach. The utter hysteria about the botched 'succession plan' meant rather than celebrate his appointment he started from a mini crisis. The 'Racism' report was a huge thing for him to have to navigate so early on in his career, and he and the club couldn't have done more in the position they were in. The 'tanking' farce and heat he was under after 2 rounds last year, and he stood in the coalface with Wilson, Cornes, Hutchy etc questioning the club's integrity to his face. He just held firm and took it all in his stride and had utter confidence in the clubs strategy and direction. In good hands.