‘Eye can lie’: Hawthorn’s ‘massive issue’ exposed as AFL great calls for change

‘Hokball’ has been all the rage in the footy world over the last year, but things might not be as good as we once thought down at Waverley Park.

The Hawks turned around an 0-5 start last year to make a barnstorming run into the finals but haven’t quite reached those same heights yet in 2025.

And despite sitting in the top eight with a win-loss record of 4-1, coach Sam Mitchell has been flagging this for weeks.

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“Their ball movement has changed. I think the first year you do something different or you’re adventurous, you can get away with it a little bit, you’re a shock to most of the competition,” North Melbourne champion David King began on Fox Footy’s First Crack Preview.

“You don’t get a lot of planning done on you, you can ambush, when they turned 0-5 and got rolling, I don’t think there was a lot of time necessarily put into how they were playing with a long-range view.

“They make finals and all of a sudden things change. I’m looking at their model now and saying, okay, the pressure is back on Sam Mitchell now. I think it’s almost requiring some alteration and some change this early in the season because the opposition know exactly what they’re going to do.

The Hawks are currently ranked 13th in the competition for being able to turn possession into a score. Last year, only Brisbane were ranked better.

“I think the eye can lie with these guys. You look at them and think they’re playing a beautiful game, we haven’t really seen that. It’s a massive issue for them and I look at what the opposition have sort of taken off them, it’s their handball game, their mark play on game, their ability to run, overlap, create, excite, explode,” King said.

Livewire small forward Nick Watson is yet to hit his straps and too often goes missing in games, while Jack Ginnivan has struggled to impact this year as well.

The Hawks are also down in some key statistical categories for ball movement. Last year, they were the best in the competition at playing on from a mark and third for handballs. This season, they’re ranked 11th and 12th in those respective metrics.

“It’s just totally different at the moment. Is it them or is it what the opposition are doing to them? I think either way you have to make change,” King said.

St Kilda champion Leigh Montagna replied: “I think you do. I think it’s a bit of both, opposition are now putting a bit of work into them and they’ve probably been caught out a little bit on how they want to play.

“It’s amazing, isn’t it? Sometimes the perception is the reality. The more people talk about ‘Hokball’ and how well it is, the more people just believe it until you actually dive into it and teams are aware of it. They’re not moving the ball as freely as they were.”

The panel then highlighted some vision from Hawthorn’s clash against Port Adelaide, where the Hawks’ ball movement was stunted as the Power successfully took away the corridor option.

“I think they’re forcing a little bit at the moment. When the eyes lift and look in-board… Port Adelaide know where they want to go. They’re taking off that short, sharp, 45 degree, 20 metre kick and forced them long down the line,” King highlighted.

The Hawks were “terrific” at the long down the line play last year, ranked first in the competition. This year, they’re ranked a lowly 14th.

“It’s become a simple answer. Take away this short, lateral, diagonal play early and get them to go long down the line, they don’t have a contested marker,” King continued.

“Mabior Chol, if this is his role in the team, he’s not performing that function. They’re basically relying on Sicily to come all the way up. He might as well stay forward.

“If this is the only way you can get through and score, then you’re in real trouble. You’ve got to look at it straight away. Are they too tall down back? Do they have enough run?”

King then showed clips of Hawthorn trying to force that inside kick, ignoring obvious options laterally.

“Then you start really searching and reaching for things. There’s the obvious lateral… they’re just trying to force the issue now. Their skills haven’t matched what we’ve seen in 2024,” he said.

“I think there are challenges right before them. They’re nowhere near the product they were last year. It’s back to square one for me and I think this is a real challenge now for the coaching department.”

Montagna went on by explaining how teams have tweaked their own ball movement to limit the potential damage caused by a turnover. Rather than a ‘run and gun’ approach from oppositions, they’ve slowed, so that Hawthorn can’t bounce and rebound out as effectively.

“The other part that happens is that teams now work out that when you move the ball into your own forward line, if you go too quick, they can bounce out. That’s when Hawthorn are at their best, when they bounced and went,” Montagna said.

“Teams are being a bit more measured in their ball movement towards Hawthorn. So if they do turn it over, they’re in a much better shape to defend. They’re not allowing that bounce and rebound game to start. I think Hawthorn are having trouble trying to fnd their other weapon, their other plan to get through it.”

Post-bye last year, the Hawks were fourth for moving the ball and fourth for getting return once inside 50. This year, they’re 15th and 12th.

“It’s completely flipped. You’ve got to work out which way they go. Do they defend harder and just absolutely shore up behind the footy and make sure you’re staying in games? Or do you try a different method? Or do you go back to a little bit wider for the next few weeks just to recalibrate? Who knows, we’ll wait and see what Sam does,” King said.

Former Hawthorn sharpshooter Ben Dixon said the Hawks were unable to turn to plan B in the heavy defeat to the Power in Gather Round.

“What you’re showing, that first possession, they want that inside. They didn’t get the inside and there was no other plan B,” Dixon added.

The Hawks will miss Will Day dearly, who is set for a lengthy stint on the sidelines due to a foot injury.

Day adds balance to the midfield mix, has that explosive power and X-Factor that makes him a difficult matchup for opposition coaches.

The likes of Jai Newcombe, James Worpel and Conor Nash complement him, but can they do the heavy lifting without him? Can Cam Mackenzie or Josh Ward step up in his absence?

Then there’s the issue of the forward line.

Mitch Lewis is still recovering from an ACL injury last year, but young key forward Calsher Dear isn’t far away from making his return from a back problem. Both would give the Hawks another option in a front half that is desperately needing a marking target.

“I think a challenge is selection. I’m not convinced Mabior Chol is in this team, if you can’t contested mark long down the line or bring the ball to ground 80 per cent of the time. There are challenges before Sam Mitchell,” King said.

“He picks and chooses when he wants to play, Mabior. When push comes to shove and there is selection pressure, I know who’s going to fall out of that one,” Dixon added.

Chol, who won the Hawks’ goalkicking in 2024, has struggled without another big body next to him.

He’s dropped in basically all key statistical measures this year including disposals (7.6 in 2025 vs 9.3 in 2024), marks (3.2 vs 3.7), tackles (2.7 vs 1.8) and goals (1.4 vs 1.6).

Whether he’s being asked to do too much or he’s simply not cut out to be the main target is up for debate, but the good news is, the Hawks have options.

Dear is only listed as a week or two away from a return, although he might have to come through the VFL at first, while Lewis finally has a timeline for his own injury issues, currently listed as seven to nine weeks.

The Hawks could also call upon athletic ruckman Max Ramsden as another option, while ruck Ned Reeves and untried tall Jasper Scaife are others waiting in the wings for an opportunity.

So what does Sam Mitchell do now? Will he stick to his guns and back his side to rediscover their spark, or will he make a slight tweak or two to change things up?

Bring on Easter Monday.