Emily Bates was overcome with emotion when informed she would be the next captain of the Hawthorn Football Club, a reaction that surprised even her.

After achieving almost every accolade the league has on offer over her esteemed career, from a premiership to AFLW league best and fairest, she now adds captain to her sparking C, revealing it’s something she’s eager to take on.

“I was shocked by how emotional I was,” Bates said.

“I think when it’s such a journey that you’ve been on in terms of being at Brisbane, being here now at Hawthorn, there’s so many life things that have happened along the way.

“So, I think to just get that news and just hear I guess what all my teammates think about me and how valued I am here, it just meant a lot.

“It’s been a bit of a whirlwind of a week, I think it’s starting to sink in.

“It’s funny you feel that extra little bit of responsibility in just making sure the players are ready for training, the energy is up.

“But it’s been an incredible week, I’ve had some awesome messages but now I’m just ready to get stuck back into work and get into the fun stuff.”

Bates said this appointment not only means the world to her, but to her family as well. She made note of her late father and how proud she knows he would be.

“Obviously, I called Mum straight away and she was in tears because she knows how special this club is to me and how much this would mean to me, this appointment,” she said.

“And I think I was pretty emotional because I do think about my Dad and what it would mean to him, and obviously it would mean the world.”

Bates spoke to the depth of her fellow leadership group members and what they each bring to the table.

“We have an awesome leadership group which I’m really excited about,” Bates said.

“Westy (Eliza West) as vice-captain is great, the minute she came into the club she’s had a massive impact. She’s someone who really drives standards, works really hard, and is also a really positive and warm person to be around, so I think she balances me out pretty well.

“Jas Fleming, obviously she’s someone who leads by example and is so young so it’s great to have her part of the leadership group so she can continue to develop as a leader.

“Tilly (Lucas-Rodd) once again a great leader and someone I’ll lean on a lot this year. Is really great with their feedback and is a really direct person and is really honest as a leader, which is what we need as well.

“As well as Jenna Richardson who’s new to the group. So, she’s really emerging as a leader this year, she sets the example on the field, she had great connections with all our teammates so it’s great to see her get that nod.”

Bates spoke to the team’s focus ahead of the 2024 season and how they’re striving to take their game to the next level.

“I think the goal is to really shift our mindset from, you know it was all about potential and young and developing the last few seasons, to now a real high-performance mindset and striving to see what we can achieve.

“The standards at training have gone through the roof, the skill level has gone through the roof so I think we don’t want to put a ceiling on what we can achieve.

“It’s really exciting, obviously every team wants to play finals and there’s no shame in saying that so I’m excited to see what we can do, especially in round one against Carlton.

Hear from Emily in the full interview below.