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hawthorn trainer Sam Mitchell says the burgeoning leadership within his ‘Rascal Pack’ was behind an unusual moment involving Jack Ginivan on Saturday.
The Hawks were all smiles after the win Adelaide with 27 points for their fifth win in the last seven games, but the fiery celebration of the goal needed explaining after the game.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Fiery moment Jack Ginivan is tackled by an angry team-mate.
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Ginivan scored the game-tying goal in the final seconds of the third quarter and celebrated loudly before being surrounded by teammates.
One, however, seemed more fired up than the others.
Last year’s club champion Will Day screamed in Ginivan’s face and repeatedly shoved his team-mate, even grabbing his jumper for a final hard hit.
Fans immediately began to question whether this was genuine anger – but as it turns out, there was much more to the story.
Five minutes earlier, Ginnivan had burned two team-mates running towards an open goal for a stretched shot that dribbled just behind and the Crows immediately rebounded to kick a big shot.
Yet when Ginnivan soon made up for it with his second goal of the afternoon, Day refused to let his team-mate forget his error.
The clash was caught on camera and given the two didn’t appear to make up immediately afterwards, the subject was inevitably brought up in Hawthorn’s post-match press conference.
“I was warned there might be a few questions about it,” Mitchell said.
The club legend said Day’s outburst stemmed from the Rascal Pack taking ownership of his own development.
“There’s this whole little group of players, they spend all their time together and they all have their celebrations and all that stuff,” Mitchell said.
“Basically, I think what was happening was they were going into Ginny because his two best friends were right in front of him and he didn’t see them and there was a shot on goal (five minutes earlier). That’s what they’re in it for.
Day himself shared a photo of Ginnivan later on Saturday night, laughing as he wrote: “I love this guy, just a celebration that caught fire – take it easy.”
Ginnivan then joked, “We fucking hate each other.”
Mitchell said the difference in the mindset of this group is night and day from just a few years ago.
“I think the banter these guys have, in a fun way, they’re having a great time playing footy as young men in their early 20s. But by the same logic, they started keeping track of each other,” the coach said.
“If you look at us as a group, I think they’re a good snapshot. They have started their careers with fun, maybe not doing everything they should be doing.
“And now when they’re going outside of what they know is the best thing for the team, they’re pulling each other and so the coaches don’t have to get involved.” They basically manage themselves.
“I thought the maturity that the younger offensive group showed today — Ginny, Dylan Moore, Connor McDonald, Kalsher Dear — after a little bit of a rough second quarter, I thought that was a big part of the win.
“That goal right at three-quarter time was vital for him and Day recognized that moment and will certainly deliver.”
Ginnivan finished with two goals and three sacks, while Moore led the way with five goals and one sack.
Hawthorn’s win capped off a day in which they celebrated Jack Gunston’s 250th game while marking their 2014 premiership.
Mitchell and Gunston played in that grand final and some of their teammates had a rowdy game in a private box during the match.
Moore set up Gunston for the last goal of the game and Mitchell said the moment was “kind of poetic”.
After losing their first five games, Hawthorn are now 5-7 and will be a tough task for GWS next Saturday in Launceston.
“The players have a great understanding of what our best looks like and how we can produce it, so we’re doing that more and more,” Mitchell said.
“We’re finally at a point where we have to be competitive against every country.”
– with AAP
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