Hawks ‘nowhere near’ top sides: Mitchell

The Hawks claimed an emphatic 32-point win over Collingwood on Saturday, two months after they convincingly beat third-placed Brisbane at the MCG, but their second-year coach would not entertain talk of a run at finals next season.

Mitchell said there was no limit on how quickly Hawthorn could continue to rebuild but thought his side still needed time to narrow the gap between its best and worst.

The Hawks have been beaten by more than 50 points eight times this season, but not since round 16, with Mitchell attributing their increasing competitiveness to the development of individual players.

“Across the board we’ve become a bit more consistent during the year, but we’re still nowhere near the level of the top sides,” he said.

“A lot of our players have (reached) that 30-game mark … if you think of Josh Ward as an example, at the end of last year, 15 games, some really good ones but he could go missing at different stages.

“Now he’s a much more consistent player, and the games where he’s not at his best he’s still making a contribution.”

Mitchell said he was pleased Hawthorn fans could enjoy the aftermath of their upset win over the Magpies in front of 60,000 at the MCG, but stringing together consecutive strong performances remained a challenge for his side, let alone contending for a finals spot.

“I was really happy for the Hawks fans out there to walk with a bit of pride this week and be able to enjoy it for a whole week … certainly internally we enjoy it for 24 or 48 hours but then straight back to work – we were able to do it against the Pies, but can we do eight quarters in a row against the Bulldogs?” he said.

“I’m not thinking about next year in the slightest at the moment, I’m very much focused on finishing this season really strongly.

“We’ve never put a ceiling on how quickly we can go where we want to go, but we understand it does take time to get games into everyone and get the experience needed.”

Mitchell joked that star defender James Sicily would get to continue his “headband gate” battle against Aaron Naughton after he yanked the trademark accessory off the Bulldogs forward’s head during their last encounter.

But he said there would be no direct assignment for Sicily, with the Hawks wary of the threat also posed by Rory Lobb, who Mitchell said had “caused us a lot of trouble in the past”.

Mitchell also paid tribute to three-time premiership teammate Isaac Smith after he announced his retirement on Thursday morning, describing the wingman as an infectious personality around the club.

“He was a big-game player and such a loveable teammate … I was really surprised, to be honest. I think he’s still playing fantastic footy,” Mitchell said.

Originally published as ‘Nowhere near the level’: Sam Mitchell says Hawks still have long build ahead