Following a terrifying trip to play Gold Coast, Sam Mitchell stated his team should be “well past games like that.”
DESTROYED After the “unacceptable” loss to Gold Coast on Saturday night, Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell said he would “ramp things up” at training the following week, to the point where he was ready to cop another injury.
The Hawks, who are currently without a win, are scheduled to play North Melbourne on Sunday. Mitchell stated that in light of the 53-point humiliation, both the players and coaches must thoroughly reassess their strategy.
At the press conference following the game, Mitchell, who was clearly upset with his team’s performance, stated there was no silver lining in the defeat.
“I am incredibly let down. We ought to be well past such games by now,” he remarked.
“In that game, we lost in every way. This midfield battle was not ours. There was no contest we could win in front of the ball. We failed to prevent them from scoring on the other end.
Not a single thing about that game worked to our advantage.
“I think we’re probably the easiest team to put pressure on, because we invite it ourselves, and they were really good in that area.”
Gold Coast hammered Hawthorn’s midfield. Opponents James Worpel (14), Conor Nash (10) and Jai Newcomb (10) could hardly get a hand on the ball as Noah Anderson (36 disposals), Touk Miller (28) and Matt Rowell (23) ran wild.
Will Graham, a second-game player for the Suns, outperformed any midfielder with a brown and gold jumper by laying 14 solid tackles.
Mitchell said that although Hawthorn had mentioned the oily playing field and Gold Coast’s superb tackling, his team was still making mistakes.
That is an entirely inappropriate manner to play. That was our worst performance in a very long time,” he remarked.
“It is insufficient.
“After the game, we spoke with the players about the standards we set for ourselves. Our preparation, the amount of extra work we perform, the amount of time we dedicate, and the amount of tape we watch.
“If you’re not searching everywhere for the solution that works best for you… I’m not sure how many players would claim to be playing well right now.
“Coaches too, have we got the right plan?”
Mitchell, who already has a lengthy injury list, declared that there would be no messing around during this week’s training sessions. They had eight days to get ready for the Kangaroos.
“I think we’re probably going to have to ramp a few things up during the week and if we lose one (player) to a corkie or something like that, then we probably have to accept that,” he stated.
“We can’t play with the physicality we did tonight and expect to be competitive.”
It makes sense that Gold Coast coach Damien Hardwick was happy with his team’s performance.
Malcolm Rosas Jr., the Suns’ small forward, suffered a hamstring injury during the team’s victory, which brought them to a 3-2 record.
Hardwick expressed his excitement about his upcoming Sydney show at the SCG on Sunday.
“Sydney are one of those clubs you strive to become, if that makes sense?” stated Hardwick.
“They consistently appear each week and are in finals every time. Right now, we are constructing that journey.
“We would really like to defeat that club.
“We go in really, really confident that if we play our way, come in with the same defensive intent and back in our system, I think we’re a chance.”
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