Hawthorn Senior Coach Sam Mitchell has highlighted pressure as an area of focus for the team ahead of Thursday night’s clash with the Western Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium.
Mitchell said the side has had a big week on the track in preparation for the game as it looks to bounce back from three straight losses.
The Hawks coach also commented on James Sicily’s hip/abdominal injury and the Bulldogs’ form when speaking to the media on Wednesday morning.
We summarised the key points from his press conference below.
On Sicily’s injury
“It’s not groin, it’s more up in a higher spot, so it’s one of those things that’s a little bit unpredictable. You don’t see them that often. We have had one recently, a couple of years ago, which settled down in a couple of weeks, but they can take a little bit longer. But we’re hopeful that the two weeks will be our maximum… so on the other side of the bye, hopefully we get him back. One of the downsides of the injury he’s had is he hasn’t been able to train a lot. While not playing has never been a risk, his actual training consistency hasn’t been there. Obviously, that makes it a little bit tougher to perform on the weekend, but he’s a proud guy - he’s always trying to train and trying to do a bit more. Having a forced rest, we think, will be the best thing for him.”
On the Bulldogs
“They’re in great form. They’re the most potent offensive team in the competition. Their stoppage dominance has been really clear. I think in all their good performances, it’s been absolutely A-Grade. They’re doing a couple of unique things with the way they’re playing. Bevo’s (Luke Beveridge) obviously a talented coach, so he’s got them humming along really nicely. It’s going to be a huge challenge, and we’re really looking forward to it. They’re a good side for us to play. We’re coming off a short break, they’re coming off the bye, so I feel like we’re obviously playing for a lot in a game after a run of weeks we know we need to improve on.”
On the main focus heading into the game
“I just think it’s pressure, I think it’s obvious. You guys (the media), rightly so, have talked about it a lot. We can’t get away with having tackles in the 30s and the opposition having tackles in the 70s or the 80s, that’s not going to stand up in the long term. I mean, I don’t think we have to win the tackle count. If you looked at the winning team, winning tackle count isn’t often the winning team. You can’t get beaten by the way we have been so enabling the players to be able to put pressure on the opposition, that will be the most important thing for us, and I think if we can do that, that will give us the best chance.”
On whether his messaging changes ahead of Thursday
“You change everything every week in one sense, but always coming back to the same thing. You have guiding principles with the way that we want to play and the plan that we have for the direction that we want to go, and every week, there’s an eb and a flow. I’d like a bit more flow in our game and a little bit less eb, but the players have a good understanding and why and then it’s can we produce performances that are closer to our best. We talk about physical toughness and mental toughness and being able to play close to the top of your range of talent and abilities, regardless of the competitive circumstance. If we can do that on a consistent basis more than we have recently, that’s going to give us the best chance to have success.”
Watch Mitchell’s full press conference below.
