Hawk's will regain form!

[Mojo]

I am posting this thread to rejuvinate the diminished confidence & hope of so many Hawthorn supporters from the forum. And ask all fans to keep faith!

Sunday's loss to the kangaroos was very ordinary to say the least, our aggressiveness was absent, our run was lack luster and the overall team display was ugly. With little doubt one of the lowest performances of the season.

The exclusions of Boyle, Osborne and Buddy and Mitchell on Sunday, it appears injuries have hindered our inexperianced team in the past month. Now with losses to Adelaide, St Kilda and the kangaroos, cracks have begun to amerge as the Hawks spirral downwards, pregressively looking worse week by week.

However, despite these losses, perhaps now is not the worst time to endure the 'form slump'. If in fact the hawks pick themselves up from the slums prior to September, it might just well work in our favour. Setting our finals campaign up. Given some teams have peaked to early or too late in a season consequently underperforming or missing finals altogether, this hurdle that we must now encounter may provide the team with fresh ambition and confidence come September.

The ommissions I previously mentioned have obviously hurt our team, but like the West Coasts, Adelaides and the Sydneys of the competition - who have learnt to be adaptable when a player goes down by replacing one soldier with another, we now must learn the same to hopefully become a better side in the future!

With the additions of Boyle, Buddy, Mitchell, Osborne and Vandernburg in the next few weeks we will have regained some of our core experienced and talented players, while learning a lesson along the way. Hopefully despite our losses we will bounce back, and with the spirit still (reportedly) high and a fresh group of young kids bouncing off walls, we will pick ourselves up and dust off the weaknesses that that purtruded in the last month, because Al Clarkson and the boys havent worked this hard for the year to let it drop away now! We will be there in September, and we will regain our winning form!

Apologies its so long!

 

[quiksilver83]

I certainly hope so, buddy, boyle and mitchell back into the team will make a significant difference. It all starts with this week vs the bombers!

 

[HODGEYROAD]

Geez i hope so, to miss the finals after being 9-4 would just be heartbreaking.

 

[onezzz]

agree

GO HAWKS

 

[The Cryptkeeper]

Our next 4 games are winnable. We can still finish 14-8 and snatch 4th spot. There is no need for panic unless we lose to Essendon this week.

 

[BigAl3001]

We have every chance of winning the next 4 but nobody can tip us with any confidence. That last two weeks have been very poor in winnable games so there is nothing to make me think it will just turn around.
The players have to make it happen. It’s a ruthless competition and you’ve got to earn your spot. I’d like to see us start to hunt the opposition again and take there focus off what we’re doing.

 

[VelvetSledge]

Our next 4 games are winnable. We can still finish 14-8 and snatch 4th spot. There is no need for panic unless we lose to Essendon this week.

Good point, but note that one team can't make your road to the finals seem easier- If a team turns up, they have a chance, and Hawthorn haven't looked too good in the past weeks.

On another note, I don't know why I'm feeling confident when Buddy Franklin is in...

 

[macdaddio]

Our next 4 games are winnable. We can still finish 14-8 and snatch 4th spot. There is no need for panic unless we lose to Essendon this week.

we can win every remaining game if.......and only if we get back boyle, our structure has not been the same since we lost him....he has been out 4 weeks, since we have only beaten richmond..lost to saints should have won, lost to crows, lost to roo,s wich had we kicked straight we would have won..

but you are right this week being sheed,s last game againts us might pump them up.......so we better be ready for them and not play like school boys and rough them up and beat them up....this is a must win for if we loose to them then our season might as well over....

gee i cant stand essendon i realy hope we thrash them..........

 

[Mojo]

we can win every remaining game if.......and only if we get back boyle, our structure has not been the same since we lost him....he has been out 4 weeks, since we have only beaten richmond..lost to saints should have won, lost to crows, lost to roo,s wich had we kicked straight we would have won..

but you are right this week being sheed,s last game againts us might pump them up.......so we better be ready for them and not play like school boys and rough them up and beat them up....this is a must win for if we loose to them then our season might as well over....

gee i cant stand essendon i realy hope we thrash them..........

I dont think winning every game is possible! There's some tough matches in there!

 

[MinerBoy]

We have every chance of winning the next 4 but nobody can tip us with any confidence. That last two weeks have been very poor in winnable games so there is nothing to make me think it will just turn around.
The players have to make it happen. It’s a ruthless competition and you’ve got to earn your spot. I’d like to see us start to hunt the opposition again and take there focus off what we’re doing.

Yep, that's a really nice analogy of how we play our best footy. All teams need a game plan, and regardless of whether ours is right or wrong, we just need to get that INTENSITY back where we work our arses off for our team mates. This means working really hard to make options for each other when we have the ball and MORE IMPORTANTLY, pressurise the opposition (hunt them) with vigorous intent when they have the ball. This was a highlight of our early season form where we forced other sides to back peddle and turn the ball over due to our pressure, which in turn had a positive effect on our own confidence levels and they way we moved the ball forward.

 

[thatswhatimtalkinabout]

Yep, that's a really nice analogy of how we play our best footy. All teams need a game plan, and regardless of whether ours is right or wrong, we just need to get that INTENSITY back where we work our arses off for our team mates. This means working really hard to make options for each other when we have the ball and MORE IMPORTANTLY, pressurise the opposition (hunt them) with vigorous intent when they have the ball. This was a highlight of our early season form where we forced other sides to back peddle and turn the ball over due to our pressure, which in turn had a positive effect on our own confidence levels and they way we moved the ball forward.

Agree with all of that MB. Another area where we are only fair to middling is sherperding and blocking to give the ball carrier more time. From the few games of Box Hill I have seen this year it is totally non-existant down there.

If we get any opportunity to put the opposition on their bum and feel pain, it should be taken. Good teams do that.

If the players work hard for each other it will turn around very quickly.

 

[That's deliberate]

Regardless if we win or not we want to see a contest from our boys...tackling , harrasing, and pressuring the opposition, if we do that we're half a chance regardless of the 22 that take the field.

If we line up with a four man forward line again ... or so called buddy's box i'm going to throw up.

I don't care if you have 2 Wayne Carey's and 2 Leigh Mathews playing as your 4 forwards...forcing 4 defenders to play within 25 meters of themselves where they can destroy the contested ball (and they have 2 of the best at it) plus 2 opposition defenders staying where they are suppose to be we are gunna get killed..

Buddy one out in the square with small (any small) doesnt matter - the entire fifty to himself and he'll kick 10 every week..everyone else is man on man and we'll beat this rabble on the breaks coz we're too quick for them.