Hawks handle heat

By Paul Pickering
THE Hawthorn Football Club swaggered onto Pakenham’s Toomuc Reser-
ve with the AFL premiership cup in tow on Tuesday.
The Hawks endured sweltering conditions during a morning training session, before mixing with hordes of excited young fans in a 45-minute clinic.
It was the third year that Pakenham Football Club and Cardinia Shire Council have hosted the Hawks for a pre-season session, with record numbers of kids donning their brown and gold colours to get up close and personal with their footy heroes.
Pakenham Football Club president Brian Jagoe was buoyed by the turnout.
“The crowds are getting bigger and bigger every year,” he said.
“We’ve had really good support from the Hawthorn footy club, and they’re rapt every time they come out here, because it’s the best playing surface in country Victoria.”
Hawthorn forward coach John Barker said the local community should be proud of its “outstanding” facility, while also noting the importance of extending the club’s supporter base as it pushes towards its target of 50,000 members.
Coach Alistair Clarkson and injured premiership stars Luke Hodge and Trent Croad were notable absentees, but the kids swarmed around Coleman medallist Lance ‘Buddy’ Franklin and livewire Cyril Rioli.
Former Berwick junior Travis Tuck has been among the most impressive Hawks on the training track this summer, fuelled by the disappointment of missing out on finals footy in 2008.
According to Barker, the bulked-up mid-fielder is expected to break into the seniors on a more regular basis in 2009.
The news was less promising for Narre Warren South teenager Shane Savage.
The 17-year-old rookie from the Dandenong Stingrays was nursing a reconstructed right shoulder and won’t be able to join in on full-contact training for around four months.