Hawthorn looked at their list and decided it did not contain the material required for a tilt at the flag. Clarkson drew a line through the guys he thought were clogging their list and cleaned them out, realising that the consquence would be a trip to the foot of the ladder. This, as much as the high draft picks, was the recipe for current success. The point you make about the various low round pick-up just emphasises it. It is not about bottoming out and tanking, but the velocity of list turn-over.
I think Hawthorn have already done enough to show the formula can work. I emphasise, the formula is not about draft picks but list management.
To win a flag you have to form a playing group,with stability and talent. So by definition, clubs must vacillate between periods of high list turnover and low turnover to foster stability. History shows that stable teams win flags. The draft is an aside (albeit an important one), which can accelerate formation of a stable list, at a price.
Each player on the list needs to be judged according to his place in the next flag. This may include being a 'bridge' to avoid decimation of the club culture and education of the younger cohort. This is the mistake Carlton made - not retaining guys who were the heart and soul of the club in their relentless quest for youth. I am sure that is why Clarkson retained Vandeburg and then appointed him as Captain. Smart guy Addis.
IMHO, we were remiss in not accelerating the list turnover in 2007 and may well make the same mistake this year. Consequently, 2010 is still a potential disaster year for us.
Sheedy made a similar mistake at Essendon by retaining a host of favoured fringe players, top-up drafting (remember his reputation for turning @@@@ into shinola?) and playing an outdated style of footy. Sounds familiar?
I hope I am wrong, given the Gold Coasters situation.
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