The next man in can be the loneliest place to be. Almost in the team, yet not quite a part of it. That's how Changkuoth Jiath felt on elimination final night alongside 97,828 people at the MCG last September. He felt the same way at Adelaide Oval for the semi-final seven days later. 

That feeling drove Jiath during the off-season and pre-season at Waverley Park. Instead of travelling across America or Europe with a pack of teammates, Jiath chose to remain in Melbourne, leaving nothing to chance when it came to preparing his body.

Jiath's body has been an ongoing puzzle for Hawthorn's high performance department to solve across the past four years. 'CJ' has experienced the full gamut of soft tissue injuries – hamstring, calf, quad, Achilles and groin – limiting him to just 34 games since the end of 2021. 

The 25-year-old was available for selection in both finals last year, but was overlooked for his first exposure to September action after a calf injury in August left him playing a final for Box Hill instead of for Hawthorn. 

After starting 2025 where he finished last year – in the squad, but not in the 23 – Jiath replaced the suspended Jack Scrimshaw against Carlton last Thursday night and produced a performance that reminded the competition of his quality. 

"To move forward on your journey, you've got to have a setback, you've got to learn from something, and I feel like the three years I've had with injuries I'm always learning something within those injuries," Jiath told AFL.com.au.

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"I never see it as, 'Man, I'm done here, f***, just throw it away.' I always try and stay really optimistic. Last year I was really disappointed with the calf, obviously, and I wasn't selected in the finals and that really hurt me. 

"Watching hurt a lot. That's what we play for. We play footy to be in that situation. You want to play finals footy, so to not be a part of that really hurt. I learned so much and grown so much from those experiences; not making the side; not being selected.

"I made a tough decision to not go away (during the off-season), just stay around, do a lot of mobility, be in the gym pretty much every day and not miss a beat. With travel, it is hard to find a good gym, a place to train. I stayed around, got my body right and I knew it wasn't going to be easy to try and come in the side with Tom Barrass and Josh Battle coming in. 

"It made me a lot hungrier. I backed myself in, because I know I'm capable of playing good footy. I know there will be more setbacks, but I just really hope this will be the last time we talk about my injuries. Fingers crossed it's smooth sailing from here."

With explosive power, speed and endurance, Jiath's athletic profile makes him susceptible to muscle strains and niggles. He has come to terms with that reality, but is constantly investigating new ways to mitigate injury risks. 

"It is a tough one because as an explosive athlete and also an endurance athlete, you have much more chance of doing a soft tissue injury because you're sprinting and also really working hard both ways," Jiath said.

"I need to really pick my moments, when to go hard, when to pull back a bit, catch my breath and go again. I've been working on that over the last year, trying to perfect that and hopefully that will take my career a lot further. I'm trying to do the little things well – Pilates, ice baths, whatever I can."

Sam Mitchell has fielded more questions about Jiath than almost any other player across his first 71 games in charge of Hawthorn. Late on Thursday night, nearly an hour after the 20-point win over Carlton, the 42-year-old sat back in his press conference and expressed his delight after watching Jiath return from the challenges of 2024.   

"I couldn't be more proud of what he's done to get to this point. Is it all going to be smooth sailing? Who knows. But what I know is he has a great level of commitment to making sure that he has the best possible career and season that he can. I'm rapt to have him in the team," Mitchell said.

"I think with someone like 'CJ' he is such a finely tuned athlete, he obviously has got a physical profile that is magnificent but then comes with some injury risk. He has to be much more diligent than most. Some can get away with doing a bit less recovery, whereas someone like 'CJ' has to do everything right all the time. The level of professionalism needed from him because of the profile he has is at a level not many of us understand."

Jiath has bounced between a wing and half-back across his time in brown and gold. Over summer, the Gippsland Power product asked to play in defence to cement a spot in Hawthorn's best 23. And it was there on Thursday night, where Jiath roared back to life, collecting 20 disposals and eight intercepts in the 20-point win. 

"I decided, I felt as though I play my best footy in the backline. Obviously with the team, it is awesome to have multiple roles to your game – wing and half-back – but the backline is where I feel I can add to the team a lot more," he said.

"I chatted to Sam and said if you need me on a wing play me anywhere. He has been great with me on that. I'm just grateful to be playing. 

"The move to the backline really helps me because I am able to intercept and use my run as well, I can see the game well from there. That move has helped me a lot, I've come out of myself and really speak up a lot more."

It has taken many hands and minds to get Jiath back on the park. The senior coach has been a central figure, along with fitness boss Peter Burge and veteran physio Andrew Lambart, who travelled to Qatar with Jiath for treatment at Aspetar in 2024.

And they aren't the only ones. Former Opals guard Jenni Screen is now Hawthorn's head of leadership and player development manager. Then there is former Sydney and Western Bulldogs utility Ed Barlow, who joined the Hawks last year as a sports psychologist. 

"'Screeny' and Ed Barlow have helped me so much. I've been tapping in with both of them around my mental space," he said.

"When you're in rehab you're not out there, so mental is so massive. He really got me into journalling and stuff like that. Nothing deep or really out there, but more about taking notes and reflecting on what you've done in the off-season so you have confidence in the work you have done. 

"Those two have been really helpful. Sam has really backed me in, as have all the coaches. It is an awesome environment to be a part of. I'm really grateful to be a part of it."

Jiath is an ambassador for Next Gen Unite, the youth-led, non-profit organisation based in Cranbourne and dedicated to empowering South Sudanese Australians through education, mentoring, music and sports. 

Like many from his community, Jiath experienced things many here can't fathom. He was born in a refugee camp in Ethiopia – after his family fled on foot from the violent civil war in Sudan – and spent the first six years of his life living in the African nation, waiting for his family to be accepted by a country to start a new life. 

"A lot of the South Sudanese kids are really struggling because you live two lives: you live the Australian culture and the South Sudanese culture. There is a massive gap at this moment. We are the first generation, so we're trying to bridge the gap and come together," he explained inside Hawthorn's rooms late last Thursday night. 

"My parents' generation can't really speak English. As a first generation, we're the ones trying to drive this. Mental health is a massive thing in our community; it's not looked upon, so we're trying to get things rolling, so sport helps with that. 

"Even simple things like finance. A lot of parents don't know how to invest. Our currency back home is trading cows, so money isn't something we are educated on. We are trying to educate kids and families on that."

Jiath is making a difference to his community. Now he is making a difference to Hawthorn again.