Hawthorn's emerging young midfield pack are learning valuable lessons from a couple of Brownlow Medal winners.
Midfield leaders on and off the field are setting up Hawthorn for the club's next tilt at an AFL premiership.
What more tuition do young on-ballers like Josh Ward and Jai Newcombe need than to follow the advice and example of a couple of Mitchells?
Hawks senior coach Sam and experienced midfielder Tom each won the AFL's highest individual award for their ball-seeking exploits and the next generation are feeding off the two Brownlow Medal winners.
Ward and Newcombe, with just 33 games between them, were more-than-able apprentices for Tom Mitchell as he showed the way with 33 possessions in the 25-point win against West Coast at the MCG on Sunday.
Ward, who's just 18 and was playing his ninth senior game, chalked up an impressive 34 possessions while Newcombe, 20, wasn't far behind on the stats sheet with 28 disposals in his 24th appearance.
Triple premiership forward Luke Breust, who contributed a career equal-best six goals, emphasised the recognition by senior Hawks of the need to refresh the midfield group was pivotal to the team rebuild.
"Full credit to the guys who have been selfless and getting out of there (midfield) to give them the chance. Your Wardys and Jai Newcombe, these sorts of guys turning up every week and continuing to improve and drive this group forward is pretty special. They are getting exposure and that's awesome," Breust said.
Newcombe hasn't looked back after Hawthorn plucked him from its VFL affiliate Box Hill last season and added him to its 2022 rookie list.
"I'm learning a lot week by week. We've put a lot of hard work in the last few weeks, playing to some of our strengths to get a few wins to build for the back end of the year," he said.
And, as their coach would attest, Ward and Newcombe have displayed the defensive capabilities that are so crucial when they haven't got the ball.
Ward laid five tackles and Newcombe had four to keep the heat on their Eagles' counterparts at the stoppages.
"Really happy for Wardy. He's done a lot of work and it hasn't quite clicked for him," coach Mitchell said after the game.
"We knew with the talent level that he has that that was coming, it was just about trying to give him the opportunity to play in that way. I'm really, really glad that he was able to have that performance today. I think some of our growth in some of our younger players was really strong."
And Ward, a lifelong fan of the club, is continuing a proud family tradition with the Hawks. His great-grandfather Alex Lee played 31 games for Hawthorn in the 1930s.
