Nuggets73
Tom Hawkins flourishes in new roaming forward role, holds key to Geelong finals’ hopes
GEELONG has reaped the benefits of Tom Hawkins’ late-season transformation from stay at home target to roaming forward.
The 29-year-old has been a revelation after a tinkering in his traditional role, recording peak numbers since Round 19 when becoming an integral component of a new-look forward-line.
In that period Hawkins has averaged 20 possessions per game, 10 marks and four goals, but more importantly using his exceptional field kicking to lift his score involvements from 6.2 to 10.0.
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For a full forward who has sometimes struggled with set shots, Hawkins has always been a fine field kick, possessing rare vision for one normally focused on two white flags.
His new role requires travelling outside his traditional home of inside the 50m line, one where Hawkins has kicked the bulk of his 435 goals in 208 games.
He is being targeted less inside 50 but winning more ball outside of 50 where his ball use has been exceptional.
Geelong has taken a mark from 56 per cent of his kicks inside 50 since Round 19, ranked No. 1 in the competition.
Its a figure that takes into account pressure and the difficulty of the kick (8.1% being his level above the AFL average).