Tomahawk article in The Rage

[Copernicus]

Tomahawk: Can he cut it?

Garry Lyon | April 8, 2009

NOT much has gone right for Tom Hawkins, the child prodigy Geelong unveiled in round two of the 2007 season.
It was always going to be a challenge for the young man to live up to the hype that accompanied his selection in the 2006 national draft. The draft watchers lauded the pick as one of the bargains of the decade, claiming another ridiculously cheap pick-up for the Cats at No. 41 by virtue of the father-son rule. Had not his dad, Jack, played 182 games for Geelong in the 1970s and '80s, the Cats may have had to part with a first-round pick to secure his services, as opposed to a third.
His three-goal debut against the Blues had Geelong supporters smirking. Against all natural instincts, they retained their composure, fighting the desire to declare the arrival of the successor to "you know who".
He followed up the next week with four first-half goals against Melbourne at the MCG and the faithful's resolve was broken. A standing ovation was deemed appropriate and the quest to replace G. Ablett snr, both physically and spiritually, was over.
Two years on and young Hawkins prepares for another round-three game tomorrow night with an altogether different level of expectation surrounding him. Hopefully a far more realistic one. The reality is, at just 20 years of age with 20 games under his belt, Hawkins remains a promising key position prospect with a mountain of work ahead if he is to consolidate a position in the Geelong line-up.

Rest of the article here: http://www.realfooty.com.au/news/rf...1238869973728.html?page=fullpage#contentSwap1

 

[LifeSpan-Void]

Interesting to note that the Hun website has an interview with Riccardi, who says that Geelong should allow Hawkins at least 6 weeks in the seniors to find his feet, and that he IS "the answer". He also makes a good point about confusion in the forward 50, where at one point in the game Hawkins had Mooney, Chapman AND Stevie J barking orders at him. No wonder he's tentative.

Edit: link is here http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/sport/afl/story/0,26576,25305872-19766,00.html

 

[ZosoCat]

give the kid a month in the seniors to get use to the structure and the pace of the game. He has been in and out for awhile now which I disagree with. He will be a good player but it always takes a while for a young forward to mature.

 

[Copernicus]

Yep, he just needs time to get settled. And the forward line could do with a little less confusion. He'll have a harder time finding his feet if he's unsure where to lead or if there is less space for him to work with.

On a side note, I saw an image on the Hun website where Tom was sitting on a bloke's shoulder going for the speccy. Did he even get close? Would have been an awesome grab if he was able to pull it in.

 

[Jumping Jack]

All things considered I think both articles are well balanced and reasonable in their assessment of where things are at with Hawkins.

I like Gary Lyon's article as it makes a point of talking about adjusting expectations and giving the kid a chance to find his feet ... afterall a 20 y.o with 20 games is still 'raw' in anyones language - except if you're talking about Joel Selwood.

I don't alltogether agree with Riccardi's view that you just play him for an extended period until he finds his feet. He's got to be doing enough to justify his position - but I think this will occur naturally if players upfield honour his leads a bit more than at present. I remember a game against Sydney last year at Skilled when he had a really good first half and was leading up the ground and marking strongly .... ran out of puff in the 2nd half but I thought he looked great coming further upfield.

I would like to see him throw his frame around a bit more off the ball and create some fear amongst opposition defenders ... I guess this will come with experience and confidence. The other thing I've noticed is that he's shown very little in the way of overhead skills for a bloke with his size and the reputation for strong overhead marking prior to being drafted.

 

[AM]

Riccardi is spot-on. Tomahawk should be told he’ll be given a series of games to demonstrate confidence in him and to see if he can cut it. He’s our best long term forward option. My query relates to his temperament, not his talent. He was regarded as a much better prospect than Xavier Ellis during his Melbourne Grammar days, but Ellis has overtaken him. If only he had Joel Selwood’s work ethic and grunt.

Reckon Lyon’s article was close to the mark.

 

[Cohzee]

Calling him the replacement for Ablett Snr is just plain stupidity.

Riccardi is spot-on. Tomahawk should be told he’ll be given a series of games to demonstrate confidence in him and to see if he can cut it. He’s our best long term forward option. My query relates to his temperament, not his talent. He was regarded as a much better prospect than Xavier Ellis during his Melbourne Grammar days, but Ellis has overtaken him. If only he had Joel Selwood’s work ethic and grunt.

Reckon Lyon’s article was close to the mark.

Ellis is a midfielder, Hawkins a giant KPP. Can't really see how you can compare the two.

 

[hbk_aus]

Calling him the replacement for Ablett Snr is just plain stupidity.

quote]

I think that comment was tongue in cheek, intimating that Cats fans were prematurely calling him the best thing since Ablett.

 

[winty]

Calling him the replacement for Ablett Snr is just plain stupidity.

Wasn't Brett Spinks looked upon in a similar light when he arrived at Kardinia Park?

 

[bossa8day]

Wasn't Brett Spinks looked upon in a similar light when he arrived at Kardinia Park?

please ///my head still aches when spinks is mentioned

 

[AM]

Ellis is a midfielder, Hawkins a giant KPP. Can't really see how you can compare the two.

Not that hoary oldie, please. Of course you can compare players attitude, rate of development, skill levels et al. Has nothing to do with their size or where they play.

 

[Gaz_Brownlow]

What were Spinks stats at Geelong in the end? I remember he kicked 6 in a preseason game then looked about as effective as a pregnant hippopotamous on valium after that... Think Tommy has a fair bit on Spinks.

As was mentioned, he has only played 20 games, in quite a few of those he has looked good too. Besides some indecision with giving off set shot opportunities and confusion about where he should be leading, Tommo has provided some good options down there...i have every bit of confidence that he will work well with Mooney and Gamble. I would like to see him trialled with Lonergan, Mooney and Gamble and see how that plays out....would be exciting to see some quick high long kicks into the forward line with that setup and the likes of Chapman, Johnson, Stokes and Varcoe waiting at the fall of the ball!!

 

[cats2rise]

He kicked 27 in the first 9 games (few big bags of 4, 5, 6) but finished with 35 for the season.

http://www.geelongadvertiser.com.au/article/2008/06/20/15261_gfc.html
Spinks was on the money

 

[Bobby Giovanni]

Call it a hunch, but I think we might in for a show tonight with The Hawk™

 

[Vegas.]

Call it a hunch, but I think we might in for a show tonight with The Hawk™

He does enjoy the wide open spaces of the 'G.

 

[Bobby Giovanni]

He does enjoy the wide open spaces of the 'G.

Plus, I had a $300 collect on a horse called Super Hawk today at Hawkesbury.

 

[Rohan Coventry]

He does enjoy the wide open spaces of the 'G.

You should see him in the Bull Ring!