The evolution of Hawthorn's media strategy
The Full Sweat doco is the latest chapter in a complicated history
Subscribe to Hawks Insiders for the most in-depth and wide ranging Hawthorn cover there is. From exclusive interviews to analysis, match recaps to podcasts, the Insiders have you covered.
Hawthorn's media strategy has evolved greatly since Sam Mitchell became coach. But this summer’s docuseries Full Sweat is bold and brash — just like his team, writes ASHLEY BROWNE.
At first glance, Hawthorn opening the doors to Channel Seven for Full Sweat, an access-all-areas (or at least close to it) docuseries is the biggest media play by the club in years, perhaps ever.
And you can imagine from the great coaches box in the sky, Hawk coaching legends such as John Kennedy Snr and Allan Jeans would be shaking their heads in resignation and disappointment.
After all, it was Kennedy who once said after a loss, “Normally I have no comment about the umpiring. Today I have absolutely no comment about the umpiring.”
Jeans would invariably offer a few vanilla statements to the media, or as he would pronounce it in his unique way, “the mee-jia” before offering up a look at the stats sheets.
But then again, it was Kennedy who agreed to be mic’d for the 1975 Grand Final which was the genesis for “DON’T THINK, DON’T HOPE, DO!!!”.
And Jeans dropped his usually taciturn nature in front of the cameras when he eviscerated Channel Seven’s Peter McKenna on World of Sport in 1985 in the aftermath of the Leigh Matthews-Neville Bruns episode.
The Austere Hawks
There have been various twists and turns along the journey when it comes to Hawthorn’s relationship with the media. For the first 30 years of the club’s VFL existence, the Hawks were all but invisible. They were no good and the leading football writers of the day, such as the legendary Alf Brown from The Herald rarely made their way to Glenferrie Oval to watch them.
That changed in the 1960 and 1970s as the wins and then the premierships came. But the Hawks with their small following never sold newspapers, unlike Collingwood and whichever club Ron Barassi happened to be coaching.
And to be fair, the austere Hawks never really courted the media, unlike great rival North Melbourne, whose flashy president Allen Aylett, was the Eddie McGuire of his time. With their Grand Final breakfasts, coloured shorts (the Kangas wore them before colour TV was a thing) and of course, Barassi, the Kangas were rarely out of the news.
The one exception for Hawthorn came in 1979. Despite three premierships that decade, the Hawks had arguably the smallest supporter base in the VFL and rarely attracted crowds of more than 15,000 to its Princes Park home games.
To address this, they filmed a TV commercial, complete with a jingle that aired the weeks before home games.
See the Hawks.
See ‘em fly.
See the men soaring high.
Hear the screams!
Hear the roars!
See the Hawks show their claws.
Fly Hawks fly.
Hawks let fly.
The campaign lasted a year although the song was a fixture at games for a few years afterwards. But the ad itself has disappeared into the ether. It is the ‘white whale’ of Hawthorn history and not even the brilliant Rhett Bartlett (@rhettrospective) has uncovered a copy.
Through the ‘'80s, while Jeans was giving little away after games, the Hawks were nevertheless popular with the media. Because the team was winning, they turned up in droves every Thursday night and were made welcome by legendary trainer Bob Yeoman, who opened the trainers room’s doors to all comers for a feed.
There is no footy writer in the history of the game who has ever said no to a free feed.
Clarko’s Cluster Bubble
Hawthorn continued to be well-regarded by the media, but that changed in Alastair Clarkson’s time as coach. Part of his makeover at the club included keeping the media at arm’s length when he could.
It wasn’t the same as Ross Lyon’s “Saints bubble” and to be fair, the Hawks probably welcomed it at times given the events of 2004. At a highly-publicised and well-attended season launch, coach Peter Schwab’s “We can win the flag” remarks were misinterpreted as “We will win the flag.” It haunted him and the club from that moment on and helped trigger his departure as coach before the end of the season.
The media had no choice but to make the trek from their CBD locales out to Waverley for most of Clarkson’s time as coach. The Hawks were winning and that’s where the news was. But they weren’t getting a whole lot and the Hawks media staff, great people and super helpful, knew that when the winning stopped, so would the interest.
And so powerful was Clarkson’s hold at the club, that every media request would cross not just his desk but that of footy boss Graham Wright and needed their approval to proceed.
A New Era
When Matt Dixon joined the club midway through 2021 as communications boss, having previously worked for Victorian premier Dan Andrews, he knew a cultural shift was required, but that he might have had to wait until after Clarkson left.
Upon taking over as coach, Sam Mitchell agreed. When the time was right, the Hawks would open their doors, using every form of media available.
They actually went hard at the end of 2023, on the back of great wins that season over eventual Grand Finalists Collingwood and Brisbane. But Channel Seven and the AFL chose to back in Adelaide instead, perhaps as a make-up to the Crows after they were screwed out of the finals by circumstances out of their control.
The Hawks didn’t need to pitch to anyone at the end of last season. The AFL and the broadcasters came after them and the result is eight prime-time games through the first 16 weeks of 2025. Put it down to HokBall.
But also that Hawthorn has been an open book. Sam Mitchell is accessible and his fortnightly SEN breakfast is mandatory listening. Kane Cornes, once the greatest Hawthorn sceptic is now its number one media booster. The club’s in-house media has lifted the veil on the club’s inner sanctum like never before. They won AFL TikTok this year. The Hawks have also been generous and supportive of Hawks Insiders and other non-club media as they cast their own light on the club.
The Switched-On Hawks
But Full Sweat is a step-up again. It places the club in white-hot glare of the football world even further. Every frame of every episode will be forensically examined. It will generate social media clips and memes galore. If the Hawks stumble out of the gate, the docuseries will be offered up as Exhibit A as to why. Probably with Cornes leading the way.
The gloss has come off it a bit, but Hard Knocks was a similar phenomenon when it started in 2001, taking us behind the scenes of an NFL training camp.
AFL clubs are so risk-averse when it comes to media, especially when a Premiership is in touching distance. But not for the first time Mitchell and the Hawks have zigged when others have zagged.
If the series works – for Seven, the Hawks and JAM Media (McGuire’s production firm that is making the show) – there will be a long queue the door of Seven sports boss Chris Jones to be the club involved in 2026.
By which time the switched-on Hawks will likely be on to the next big thing.
Stay tuned to HI for more AFLW and post season coverage including the National Draft.
Make sure to follow us on social media through the links below:
It's a bit like a Glen McGrath "we will win 5-0" statement, it places pressure to perform to the next level, hopefully these boys can take the heat.
I can remember that "see the Hawks campaign", it had lots of footage of a rampaging Peter Knights in the 1978 GF. Surely there has to be a copy somewhere.
Great article Ash as I'm old enough to remember a few of those eras you have written about. I can't wait for what is to come next year after such an excellent 2024 for both the AFL and AFLW teams which has been so enjoyable to watch both on and off the field.
Another great pleasure for me has been joining up this year to the HI. I would like to take this opportunity if you could pass on a BIG THANK YOU to everyone on the team that have provided wonderful articles to read, very informative podcasts to listen to and in particular, as I live in Tassie, I'm very grateful for being able to watch the livestream panel nights held at Glenferrie Hotel. I truly appreciate all the team's efforts that has provided so many hours of enjoyment throughout the year... GO THE MIGHTY FIGHTING HAWKS!!!