“Vulnerable everywhere”: King's concerns for flawed Hawks defence

Hawthorn may sit in the top four ahead of September, but David King still isn’t sold on their tactically flawed back six.

Within their winless fixtures against Brisbane and Collingwood, the Hawks have faced 62 scoring shots from 125 inside 50s for an average of 109 points conceded.

But it’s not their leaky defence that has most concerned King.

Over the last five games, full-back Tom Barrass ranks in the bottom 70 for defenders across the AFL, averaging just two intercept marks with a 50 per cent one-on-one loss rate within that time.

Against the Magpies, Barrass was afforded just four marks across the contest, with just one intercept mark from 89 per cent time on ground.

And while his direct opponent Tim Membrey went goalless, finding the goals himself appeared far from his directive.

“Is the backline in good working order?” King told SEN Fireball.

“I do think, tactically, that the competition has awoken to the fact that if you get Tom Barrass out of that key post position where every reference point is off him, and get him charging back to goal rather than facing his goal, he is a different player.

“One intercept mark on the weekend, one intercept mark the week before, vulnerable everywhere in terms of speed.

“You don’t need to be the fastest player in the world to get off Tom Barrass going back towards your own goal.

“Then you put the responsibility on Josh Weddle, James Sicily and Josh Battle. Right now, they aren’t the answer.

“Whatever is happening with Sicily, I don’t know. ‘The Genius’ (Sam Mitchell) is moving him to the wing. Is he doing that because he is failing as a defender? I think so.

“‘We like him on the wing. It’s a really good offensive move as well as defensive’… he is not getting it done as a defender.

“He is the captain, so when you’ve got that flaw, it’s a problem at Round 23.

“Weddle is confusing me. He just looks rattled all the time. He doesn’t look comfortable. My concerns are still there.

“Their midfield is so strong that you still give them a punchers chance in every game they are going to play. But there are some concerns inside the arcs.”

The Hawks will travel to Western Australia to face off against the Eagles in a must-win clash at Optus Stadium.

A win will lock up a top four spot for Sam Mitchell’s men, while a loss could see them fall as far as the Wildcard.