Darren Minchington has described the past few months as a "rollercoaster".

The Hawks signed Minchington to a one-year rookie contract as part of the pre-season supplemental selection period (SSP) on Wednesday.

The former Saint spent 2019 on the Hawthorn list before being delisted at season's end.

He was given the opportunity to train with the squad over the pre-season but was told he would not be offered a contract last week.

That changed on Wednesday following the tragic knee injury to Will Golds who will now be placed on the long-term injury list and be replaced by Minchington. 

"It's obviously exciting to come back, it's been a pretty crazy week or a pretty crazy few months really but I'm very excited," Minchington said.

"It's been a rollercoaster to say the least but the whole time I have felt like I wasn't finished yet."

The 26-year-old said, despite the number of challenges that have confronted him in the past 18 months, he has never lost faith. 

 "My plan even when I was given the news last week was to go back and play VFL and have another crack at it.

"I got over (the list management decision) pretty quickly because I've felt like I've done everything I could.

"I feel really good in myself and in my body that I can handle it."