Coach Sam Mitchell - where is the pressure?

[Engimal v3]

I think he is doing. great job - probably not a popular opinion from members of other clubs

You can't really make an argument otherwise. Hawks were widely considered a bottom 4 lock and they're on the cusp of the 8 midway through the season.

 

[FreoGirl]

You can't really make an argument otherwise. Hawks were widely considered a bottom 4 lock and they're on the cusp of the 8 midway through the season.

Even if Hawks don't win another game, he has done better than Simpson and Alistair

 

[HairyO]

I did a reasonable / fair Ladder predictor and we enter the top 8 in Round 18, top 4 in Round 20, and top 2 in Round 22.

Unfortunately, because I was being fair / reasonable we couldnt displace the Swans from top spot.

Mitchell just not quite getting us there.

 

[hawkman]

I did a reasonable / fair Ladder predictor and we enter the top 8 in Round 18, top 4 in Round 20, and top 2 in Round 22.

Unfortunately, because I was being fair / reasonable we couldnt displace the Swans from top spot.

Mitchell just not quite getting us there.

Still means we get the MCG in the finals all the way to winning the flag

 

[Sully111]

Mitchell had one of the highest footy IQs as a player I've ever seen. I'd be really surprised if he doesn't absolutely kill it as a coach.

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

What/who changed from when Clarkson was apparently making all those calls though, as indicated by Hawks fans earlier ITT? Genuine question, McKenzie doesn’t have the same profile as a Dodoro or Wells so hard to know careers & positions unless followed the Hawks.

Circling back to this. Interesting tidbit in a recent podcast that Jordan Lewis did with Backchat, was that Clarkson arrived at his door to sell him on moving to the Suns, and proceeded to barely let him get a word in.

This was something that our list manager Graeme Wright had no knowledge of at the time according to Lewis.
Clarkson had just taken it upon himself to convince our B&F runner up that he needed to leave the club and what an opportunity it was for him. He instead said I’ll go to Melbourne thanks.

Wright and Clarkson were said to have a pretty robust and strong relationship but the direction of the list build was something that became a stumbling block after 2018 between the two as Clarko continued to court over 28’s and Wright was eyeing the draft.

 

[SSSSSS]

Mitchell had one of the highest footy IQs as a player I've ever seen. I'd be really surprised if he doesn't absolutely kill it as a coach.

I've never been worried about Sam's footy IQ.

The only thing that I worried that could have held him back (as it did with Buckley who also has one of the best footy brains in the business) is how he communicates with his players. Sam wasn't exactly the easiest guy to get a long with as a player. His standards were extremely high and he was very demanding of his teammates. Qualities that saw a bloke who went from being told he wasn't good enough for league footy to becoming one of the best midfielders of modern footy. He works bloody hard and expects people to put in. Very similar to Buckley who was a competitive beast.

No longer worried about that at all. The vibe and the buy in from the young kids has been great. They all rave about Sam. I'm wondering if the older heads in Collins and Hickmott have helped bring out Sam's softer side or if he's just mellowed a bit with age.

 

[Strapping Young Lad]

I've never been worried about Sam's footy IQ.

The only thing that I worried that could have held him back (as it did with Buckley who also has one of the best footy brains in the business) is how he communicates with his players. Sam wasn't exactly the easiest guy to get a long with as a player. His standards were extremely high and he was very demanding of his teammates. Qualities that saw a bloke who went from being told he wasn't good enough for league footy to becoming one of the best midfielders of modern footy. He works bloody hard and expects people to put in. Very similar to Buckley who was a competitive beast.

No longer worried about that at all. The vibe and the buy in from the young kids has been great. They all rave about Sam. I'm wondering if the older heads in Collins and Hickmott have helped bring out Sam's softer side or if he's just mellowed a bit with age.

He made these changes through his time at West Coast, by his own admission, as he was forced to contemplate and be aware of how he would need to interact and get the best out of players when he was soon to be coaching them, who were at that time still his teammates that he demanded so much of.

No doubt he’d continued to work on this when he returned to Hawthorn, but he was really forced to become more self aware in the short time he played at the Eagles.

 

[Mitchell Madness]

I've never been worried about Sam's footy IQ.

The only thing that I worried that could have held him back (as it did with Buckley who also has one of the best footy brains in the business) is how he communicates with his players. Sam wasn't exactly the easiest guy to get a long with as a player. His standards were extremely high and he was very demanding of his teammates. Qualities that saw a bloke who went from being told he wasn't good enough for league footy to becoming one of the best midfielders of modern footy. He works bloody hard and expects people to put in. Very similar to Buckley who was a competitive beast.

No longer worried about that at all. The vibe and the buy in from the young kids has been great. They all rave about Sam. I'm wondering if the older heads in Collins and Hickmott have helped bring out Sam's softer side or if he's just mellowed a bit with age.

Not sure where this myth he was never easy to deal with came from.
He is arrogant and a bit of a see-you-next-tuesday, but he's never been one to say "my way is the only way"
He has always been the type to say - if you do it another way, explain to me why

 

[HairyO]

Not sure where this myth he was never easy to deal with came from.
He is arrogant and a bit of a see-you-next-tuesday, but he's never been one to say "my way is the only way"
He has always been the type to say - if you do it another way, explain to me why

From him and from other players. Its not like its a made up thing which popped up out of nowhere.

That said, Crawford butted heads with players from time to time too. And wasnt afraid to give a spray if he felt a spray was needed.

So too Michael Jordan. And Im sure you can just list every high achieving sportsperson. They are intensely driven and goal focussed.

 

[Mitchell Madness]

From him and from other players. Its not like its a made up thing which popped up out of nowhere.

That said, Crawford butted heads with players from time to time too. And wasnt afraid to give a spray if he felt a spray was needed.

So too Michael Jordan. And Im sure you can just list every high achieving sportsperson. They are intensely driven and goal focussed.

Being arrogant isn't the same as being hard to get along with.
Having a personality not everyone likes also is not the same. Hell, name me one person who everyone likes?

 

[threesixpio]

I've never been worried about Sam's footy IQ.

The only thing that I worried that could have held him back (as it did with Buckley who also has one of the best footy brains in the business) is how he communicates with his players. Sam wasn't exactly the easiest guy to get a long with as a player. His standards were extremely high and he was very demanding of his teammates. Qualities that saw a bloke who went from being told he wasn't good enough for league footy to becoming one of the best midfielders of modern footy. He works bloody hard and expects people to put in. Very similar to Buckley who was a competitive beast.

No longer worried about that at all. The vibe and the buy in from the young kids has been great. They all rave about Sam. I'm wondering if the older heads in Collins and Hickmott have helped bring out Sam's softer side or if he's just mellowed a bit with age.

Has totally grown up