Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell says the club isn't shying away from ruining Dustin Martin's 300th celebration when it faces Richmond on Saturday at the MCG.
The modern-day champion is set to return for the Tigers after illness downed him for the trip to Adelaide, setting up a dream clash at the home of football.
With the week dedicated to honouring Martin and his remarkable achievements, it is the Hawks who are posed as the "villains" in the milestone match, something Mitchell is "happy" to be.
2024-06-15T06:35:00Z
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"I don't think I need to bring it (Martin's 300th) up," Mitchell joked.
"It's been everywhere I've seen it and so it should be... he's as good a player as we've seen in this generation.
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"It's quite a privilege to play in this game as a club... we'll do our best to take our role as the villain and take away what everyone hopes will be a fairytale.
"We're the villains in the story and we're happy to play that."
Saturday's match is tipped to reach a bumper crowd of 80,000 fans, with the twilight timeslot quickly becoming a fan favourite.
With the youth of Hawthorn's list and the inexperience in big games, Mitchell says that they'll be leaning on some of their senior players for assistance, admitting some are more equipped than others.
Premiership players Jack Gunston and Luke Breust immediately spring to mind while ex-Pie Jack Ginnivan frequently played in front of a huge Collingwood army.
"We will draw on the experience of whoever is best equipped for any situation so there's plenty of players who have played in big games," Mitchell said.
"And there's quite a few who haven't.
"(We'll be coming up against" half a side who are premiership players and premiership teammates of Dusty's so it'll be a big challenge for us.
"There's two parts (to this challenge). There's two hours of the actual game and then there's the event that goes on around it, which we've got no control over.
"The only thing we're focused on is making sure we play the game in the manner that we need to to get the win."
Hawthorn is right in the mix for a genuine finals push after a stellar two-month patch which has seen two losses (Sydney and Port Adelaide) since Round 5, sitting one game outside the eight.
On a lesser note (in comparison to Martin's milestone) is Changkuoth Jiath's 50th game, of which Mitchell says the players are excited to celebrate.
Jiath has had to face setback after setback with a long history of injuries since being drafted as a Category B Rookie in 2017.
The 25-year-old has yet to play a full season at the Hawks, recording a year-high 16 games back in 2021.
"Massive milestone," Mitchell said.
"I think, even though perhaps 50 games for some (isn't as difficult), when Changkuoth plays his 50th, there's something special about it because of what he's had to go through.
"He's never quite had it easy. He's always had something difficult to work through... some great challenges and I'm really proud of what he's been able to do this season to get back with the setbacks he's had.
"But when you look at the enthusiasm and environment he creates around him, I think everyone comes away with a more positive mindset.
"The fact that he's been able to create that in our group is really important for us and I think the players will be really excited to run out for his 50th and know that his next 50 are going to be pretty special moments."
In other news, Hawthorn is hopeful that spearhead forward Mitch Lewis will return after the club's bye, albeit a few hoops to jump through yet.
Lewis last played in the annual Easter Monday clash with Geelong in April and hasn't been sighted since with a nagging knee injury.
The key forward has progressed nicely, with Mitchell saying he'll likely play "limited minutes" in the VFL over the weekend in his bid to return in Round 16.
"No, he needs to get through training... he'll be (on) quite limited minutes," Mitchell said.
"Hopefully he gets through training today but we won't be putting him at risk this week... he needs to play 50 minutes of footy, which is his next step.
"So hopefully he can get that out of the way this week, play for Box Hill for a bit and then be more available after the bye next week.
Ruck duo Lloyd Meek (ankle) and Ned Reeves (back) are in a race to be fit for Saturday's clash, while veteran forward Chad Wingard (calf) suffered a minor setback in his recovery but is aiming for a return in Round 16.
If both Meek and Reeves are ruled out of the Tiger's game, Mitchell declared youngster Max Ramsden ready to go after impressive form in the VFL.
