Mitch Lewis will make his long-awaited return to an AFL field this weekend after being named in Hawthorn's Round 19 team to face Port Adelaide.

When Lewis runs out onto UTAS Stadium in Launceston this Saturday afternoon, it will have been 378 days since he sustained his ACL knee injury in Round 17 of last year.

The 26-year-old has been put through a rigorous rehab program over the past 12 months, which included a trip to the United States to benefit from internationally renowned reconditioning guru Bill Knowles. 

Lewis made his competitive return through VFL last month, where he's averaged 6.6 marks and 3.3 goals per game through three outings for Box Hill, which included two matches on managed minutes.

Prior to his injury-interrupted 2024 campaign, the 199cm key forward was spearheading Hawthorn's attack with an average of 2.43 goals per game across 2022 & 2023.

The rest of Hawthorn's Round 19 team will be announed this evening at 6.20pm AEST.