As Hawthorn prepares to welcome a top 10 draft selection for the second year in a row, we’ve taken a trip down memory lane to reflect on the history of our high draft picks.

Quiz: How well do you remember the Hawks' 2021 season?

The Hawks currently hold picks 5, 21, 24, 59, 65 and 81 ahead of the NAB AFL Draft this month, with Pick 5 being the highest selection the club has had since 2005.  

It is also the first time in 15 years that the Hawks have a back-to-back selection within the top 10 – the last time being in 2005 and 2006.

Hawthorn have had a total of 14 top 10 national draft picks since the draft system started in 1986.

Three of the club’s top 10 selections – Luke Hodge, Jarryd Roughead and Jordan Lewis – went on to become four-time premiership players with the Hawks.

Here’s a look back at the full list of Hawthorn’s top 10 national draft selections year-by-year.

Pick 1 – Alex McDonald

1988, 46 games

Taken as Hawthorn’s first ever number one pick in the national draft, McDonald went on to make his AFL debut in 1990, but struggled to establish himself at the senior level.

After 46 games and 24 goals during six seasons in the brown and gold, he crossed to Collingwood where he played a further 61 games for the Pies, before hip problems forced his premature retirement in 1999.

Pick 8 – Daniel Harford

1994, 153 games

Harford played 153 games for the Hawks between 1995 and 2003, and booted 67 goals.

He moved to Carlton in 2004 where we went to play nine games before calling time on his career.

Currently the senior coach of Carlton’s AFLW side, ‘Harf’ remains a part of Hawthorn as the MC of many of the club’s events.

Pick 5 – Brendan Krummel

1995, 64 games

Krummel started his AFL career with the West Coast Eagles but struggled to get game time.

He went on to join Fremantle for their inaugural season in 1995 but faced injury issues.

He then made a move to Victoria in 1996 after being selected at Pick 5 in the draft by Hawthorn, but was again hampered by injuries.

After 64 games and 47 goals with the Hawks, Krummel announced his retirement during the 2000 season.

Pick 3 – Trent Croad

1997, 184 games, 1 premiership

At just 17-years-old, Croad was selected by Hawthorn at Pick 3 in the 1997 national draft.

Barely missing a beat in his transition to the elite level, Croad went on to play 84 games across his first four years as a Hawk.

A shock trade at the end of the 2001 season saw him spend the next two years at Fremantle, before he made a return to the brown and gold in 2004.

He went on to play another 100 games for the club over the next five years, becoming a premiership player in 2008.

Pick 10 – Luke McPharlin

1999, 12 games

After being selected by Hawthorn as Pick 10 in the 1999 national draft, the key defender later went on to join the Dockers after just 12 games at the Hawks.

Injuries plagued McPharlin at the beginning and tail-end of his career, but he went on to reach great success in between.

He was named an All-Australian in 2012 and was integral to leading the club to its first Grand Final a year later.

McPharlin announced his retirement from the AFL in 2015 after 256 games and 16 seasons in the league.

Pick 1 – Luke Hodge

2001, 305 games, 4 premierships

Taken at Pick 1 in the 2001 national draft, Hodge went on to become one of the greatest leaders our game has seen.

He played in four premierships, captaining the Hawks in three of them, and becoming one of just four people to have won dual Norm Smith Medals.

The Hawks got 16 seasons of incredible service from Hodge, who registered 305 games.

After a short-lived retirement in 2017, Hodge continued his career for a further two seasons with the Lions, where he was renowned for his mentoring ability.

Pick 8 – Luke Brennan

2002, 19 games

Brennan was recruited to Hawthorn with the Pick 8 in the 2002 national draft.

While showing glimpses of strong performances both down back and up forward, Brennan struggled at the elite level and after just 19 games in four seasons he was delisted by Hawthorn.

He was later selected by the Sydney Swans in the 2007 AFL rookie draft, but only went on to play a further nine games.

Pick 2 – Jarryd Roughead

2004, 283 games, 4 premierships

After 15 years and 283 games in the brown and gold, Roughead called time on his illustrious AFL career at the end of the 2019 season.

A Coleman Medallist, dual All Australian, former captain, and four-time premiership player, Roughhead went on to become one of the most decorated players of the modern era.

Selected as one of three top 10 picks by the Hawks in the 2004 draft alongside Lance Franklin (Pick 5) and Jordan Lewis (Pick 7), Roughhead went on to make his debut in 2005 where he quickly cemented his place in Hawthorn’s starting line up.

In 2008, he won his first premiership of an eventual four – before going on to play an integral role in the Hawks famous 2013 to 2015 three-peat. 

Pick 5 – Lance Franklin

2004, 182 games, 2 premierships

A superstar of the game, Franklin played 182 games for Hawthorn and was part of the Hawks 2008 and 2013 premiership teams.

He became the clubs Peter Crimmins Medalist winner in 2008 and was the Hawks leading goal-kicker for six straight seasons between 2007 and 2012.

He is the seventh-greatest goal-kicker in VFL/AFL history, is one of just five men with eight All Australian blazers and is the most recent player to have kicked 100 goals in a season.

After crossing over to the Sydney Swans in 2014, the star forward has since played a further 136 games, bringing his current total to 318.

Pick 7 – Jordan Lewis

2004, 264 games, 4 premierships

Lewis notched up 264 games for Hawthorn in a golden era for the club that included playing in the 2008, 2013, 2014 and 2015 flags.

He won the Hawks' club champion award and was an All Australian in 2014, before crossing to Melbourne in the 2016 trade period.

Lewis went on to play 55 more matches for the Demons, giving him 319 in total.

The four-time premiership star announced his retirement in 2019 after his decorated career.

Pick 3 – Xavier Ellis

2005, 86 games, 1 premiership

Taken behind only Carlton’s Marc Murphy and Collingwood’s Dale Thomas in the 2005 national draft, Ellis became a premiership player in just his third season.

He was named the club’s best first year player in 2007, before featuring in 23 games in his sides premiership-winning season of 2008.

A skilful utility, Ellis spent time in midfield and defence during his eight years and 86 games as a Hawk, also playing in the 2012 Grand Final.

But after battling injuries, he joined the West Coast Eagles as a free agent at the end of 2013.

He decided to 'hang up the boots' in 2016 after 120 games between to the two clubs.

Pick 6 – Beau Dowler

2005, 16 games

Dowler managed 16 games in five seasons as a Hawk after making his debut in 2006.

He kicked a career-best four goals against Richmond in Round 21 2009, and three the following week against Essendon.

But those were his last appearances for Hawthorn, as he was unable to secure a senior game in 2010 and was delisted at the end of the season.

Pick 6 – Mitch Thorp

2006, 2 games

Hawthorn selected Mitch Thorp with Pick 6 in the 2006 national draft, but injuries restricted the promising forward to just two games.

He was later delisted at the end of 2009, putting an end to his short AFL career.

Pick 6 – Denver Grainger-Barras

2020, 5 games

Grainger-Barras made a quick impression in his first AFL season after receiving his first taste of the AFL stage in June.

Showing glimpses as a promising key figure in the Hawks’ defensive stocks, Grainger-Barras went on to play five senior games late in the year. 

The 19-year-old joined the club after being taken with Pick 6 in the 2020 national draft – Hawthorn's first top 10 draft pick since 2006.

Standing at 195cm tall, the talented youngster has shown strengths with his intercept marking and ability to read the play.