Hawthorn’s desperation to trade one of its stars for a high-end draft pick extends to Sam Mitchell ringing rival clubs himself in a bid to spark interest.
Mitchell has contacted clubs around the league, with the first-year senior coach trying to spark interest in the likes of Tom Mitchell, Jaeger O’Meara and Chad Wingard.
With the Hawks increasingly keen to gain a stronger foothold in the draft in the post-Alastair Clarkson era, Mitchell has taken to working the phones in highly unusual approach that has surprised rival clubs.
But as things stands, Hawthorn face coming up empty given there has been zero interest from other clubs battling tight salary caps.
Simply, the market is making it highly unlikely the Hawks can engineer a trade. Even if the money is there, the picks aren’t.
Contracted ruckman Jon Ceglar has been told to look for a new club, but won’t net a high return. The Hawks are even willing to pay most of his $350,000 contract to play elsewhere next season.
Mitchell, 28, O’Meara, 27 and Wingard, 28, were all traded in from other clubs and are all contracted until the end of 2023.
Kane Cornes expressed his concern about Hawthorn’s direction on SEN this morning.