Analysis Hawthorn rebuild: are they tanking?

[Strapping Young Lad]

As poetic as all of this is, he actually bet his account Hawthorn won't win 7 games. To think it may end up 14+ and the weekend we just enjoyed, it's more of a 'karma bus depot' at this point.

You are correct.

10 wins was what he was trolling me about because I wrote on our board that it would/should be our aim for 2024.

 

[Dangerousfield]

Massively impressed with what is being achieved at Hawthorn and lamenting the Crows stalled development in 2024.

Great coach vs dud coach

 

[5minutes_of_Dew]

Massively impressed with what is being achieved at Hawthorn and lamenting the Crows stalled development in 2024.

Great coach vs dud coach

Not to get too off topic but it did certainly boggle the mind when I heard of Nicks' reluctance to play Curtain. The kid could be a genuine star and they'd been refusing to let him loose. Only now that the season has slipped away do they give him a decent crack at it.

 

[Bugs1977]

Imagine being so cocky that you bet your account that a side won’t win 10 games, and then after you’ve had to go through with it, you also have to watch the team that ended your account end your clubs season.

That my friend is called poetic justice

EDIT: Just noticed that Guardian Hawk beat me to the punch on the poetry call

 

[RCAB]

15 weeks ago the consensus from opposition fans here was:

• Hawthorn a lock for bottom 4
• Hawthorn will need to start a rebuild next season
• None of their players are or potential A graders
• Sam Mitchell should be sacked, has the worst win/loss record
• Hawthorn supporters are arrogant
• Carlton in comparison, "know" how to rebuild (yep, actually oppo fans mutually agreed to this)
• Hawthorn's last trade period was misguided

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

15 weeks ago the consensus from opposition fans here was:

• Hawthorn a lock for bottom 4
• Hawthorn will need to start a rebuild next season
• None of their players are or potential A graders
• Sam Mitchell should be sacked, has the worst win/loss record
• Hawthorn supporters are arrogant
• Carlton in comparison, "know" how to rebuild (yep, actually oppo fans mutually agreed to this)
• Hawthorn's last trade period was misguided

They all thought they were punching down on the hawks, but instead they just put their names to really bad takes.

 

[threesixpio]

I never said you haven't begun your rebuild. I simply said you had not bottomed-out yet and it would get worse before it gets better.

Look how right I was.

Oh boy

 

[threesixpio]

 

[hawkman]

You’re clearly happy with the way things are going, and up and about after a win.

I’m perhaps a little less convinced. Let’s revisit down the track.

We can revisit it now if you want to

 

[Jeremias]

We can revisit it now if you want to

Sure!

Hawks have been great, but my call for perspective was still correct.

At the time you’d won one game. The arrogance was unwarranted.

 

[peetoo]

I don’t really know what ‘bottoming out’ means and suspect those who quote the phrase can’t explain it either

Season percentage might be a clue

 

[hawkman]

Sure!

Hawks have been great, but my call for perspective was still correct.

At the time you’d won one game. The arrogance was unwarranted.

There was never arrogance from me then. All I said at that time after round 6 is that we were going better than last year as we were generally playing at least 2 quarters of decent footy.
At that point I thought we could still improve to 8-9 wins but I never saw us becoming like the team we are now this year though

 

[Jeremias]

There was never arrogance from me then. All I said at that time after round 6 is that we were going better than last year as we were generally playing at least 2 quarters of decent footy.
At that point I thought we could still improve to 8-9 wins but I never saw us becoming like the team we are now this year though

So the “gotcha” moment you thought you had, was really also a “gotcha” to yourself given you also didn’t think this would happen?

Nice.

 

[Long Live HFC]

I don’t really know what ‘bottoming out’ means

118-32 sounds like bottoms out to me.

 

[RCAB]

They all thought they were punching down on the hawks, but instead they just put their names to really bad takes.

It's funny they thought they were punching down. Did Hawthorn cry like North and ask for priority picks?

I always thought that North's undoing was their pleading and woe me. In the end after all their concessions they still didn't pick Watson.

 

[Crankyhawk]

While this is true, I refuse to accept that a team consistently playing Patton, Minchington, Scully and Michael Hartley through 2020 was in 'rebuild' mode.

Start of 2021 when Moore, Jiath and Day in particular became regulars.
Grabbing Newcombe in the MSD and playing him immediately also highlighted the rebuild was in full swing.

I don’t remember Patton ever getting on the field

 

[theiaofseed]

Sure!

Hawks have been great, but my call for perspective was still correct.

At the time you’d won one game. The arrogance was unwarranted.

Can you claim arrogance if they were right? Just because you were wrong and under estimated Hawthorn doesn't mean they were arrogant.

 

[threesixpio]

Sure!

Hawks have been great, but my call for perspective was still correct.

At the time you’d won one game. The arrogance was unwarranted.

So “perspective” was Hawthorn supporters agreeing that we needed to bottom out after a rough start to the year?

 

[SpanishBrowne]

15 weeks ago the consensus from opposition fans here was:

• Hawthorn a lock for bottom 4
• Hawthorn will need to start a rebuild next season
• None of their players are or potential A graders
• Sam Mitchell should be sacked, has the worst win/loss record
• Hawthorn supporters are arrogant
• Carlton in comparison, "know" how to rebuild (yep, actually oppo fans mutually agreed to this)
• Hawthorn's last trade period was misguided

I mean.. i'll take the arrogance. But we earned it

 

[errant bounce]

They won't make finals but good on them.

Do like the Hawks but Sam Mitchell is a bit of a shit prick, in fact they all do – none of them big one another up like the Geelong boys. must have been some huge egos there.

 

[Jeremias]

Can you claim arrogance if they were right?

Yes, obviously.

Not even the most optimistic of Hawthorn supporter could see this happening. Not to this extent.

Let’s not pretend a similar turnaround didn’t happen just last year with my club.

So “perspective” was Hawthorn supporters agreeing that we needed to bottom out after a rough start to the year?

I don’t think I ever said that Hawthorn needed to bottom out this year.

Perhaps that question would be better directed towards someone who did?

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

The worst part in all of this is the SYL (and a few of his Hawk fans mates) acted like what I said was wildly irrational and unfair.

As a reminder of what I said, let's go back to page 185 of this thread;


And what was your response SYL?


Quite simply, although it is early days, it very much appears that you were wrong.

I see we've had a Chadwiko sighting in this thread today, so let's just revisit this thread and the page where you posted this.

Amazing how much you had to say earlier in the year in this thread and elsewhere, and now strangely silent.

 

[hawkman]

They won't make finals but good on them.

Do like the Hawks but Sam Mitchell is a bit of a shit prick, in fact they all do – none of them big one another up like the Geelong boys. must have been some huge egos there.

Won't make finals? We are in the 8 with Richmond and North in the last 2 weeks. Of the 4 teams fighting for the last 3 spots I would argue we are the most likely to make it

 

[sr36]

Won't make finals? We are in the 8 with Richmond and North in the last 2 weeks. Of the 4 teams fighting for the last 3 spots I would argue we are the most likely to make it

You're virtually certainties. Won't drop one and even if you did you'd probably still make it.

 

[RCAB]

Yes, obviously.

Not even the most optimistic of Hawthorn supporter could see this happening. Not to this extent.

Let’s not pretend a similar turnaround didn’t happen just last year with my club.



I don’t think I ever said that Hawthorn needed to bottom out this year.

Perhaps that question would be better directed towards someone who did?

You've misconstrued the narrative in this thread.

Hawthorn were 0-5 but we still thought we had good young team that had potential to win a premiership. Obviously we didn't think we were going to make finals this year but by next year we thought we'd more competitive. THIS... was seen to be arrogant.