Numbers Game: Mew on Roughead

WINS and losses, goals and points, kicks and handballs, and guernsey numbers made famous by the feats of footballers wearing them in September.

There’s no denying football is a numbers game.

Hawthorn has had plenty of players deliver in big finals over the years, and the current crop of Hawks will be striving to bring more success and silverware to the club in 2015.

hawthornfc.com.au caught up with a number of former Hawks greats, who talk about finals football and the player currently wearing the guernsey number they enjoyed success in.

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“Most of the guys that have played with the No. 2 jumper on have actually have played over 200 games which is a pretty special feat, I think...”

Graham Arthur, Geoff Ablett, and Jarryd Roughead are the likes of whom Chris Mew refers to as he speaks of the premiership players, including himself, to have donned the number two guernsey and surpass a double century of games played.

Mew played in five premierships through his 230-game career at centre half back, and was named All Australian in 1984 as well as in Hawthorn’s Team of the Century.

While he won his first premiership in 1983 wearing the number 46, Mew went on to the ’86, ’88 and ’89 premierships in the number two, before announcing his immediate retirement after his fourth flag in ’89.

But it was a decision that would last less than a season – coach Allan Jeans convincing the key defender to return to the field midway through the 1990 season.

Validated after again achieving the ultimate success in 1991, Mew’s decision to return provided him with what he now reflects on as the highlight of his career.

“To retire after winning against Geelong, back to back, and then ‘Jeansy’ talked me back into playing the following year… but then to go through ’91 to win especially because I’d sort of given it away and to come back for a year and win a premiership was pretty special for me,” Mew said.

“But they’re all special in their own way but it’s obviously very hard to get there and to win is the ultimate thing to do.”

Mew sees the role of the Hawks’ current number two as being crucial to their chances of securing a third consecutive flag.

“Obviously (Jarryd Roughead)’s got to play well but I mean he swaps around," he said.

"He’s very tall, versatile, obviously a great mark, kick, very hard to match up on – if you played him man-on-man he’d be a tough opponent I think.

“He can go into the ruck at some stage and he’ll run around on the ball at some stage – he’ll just play his role as they all do.”

While Mew himself was part of one of the Hawks’ most successful eras, he sees the current side as just as impressive, if not more so, as they look to create Hawthorn history.

“We had such a good side back then so to play what we played in, so many grand finals over such a period of time – I don’t think that’ll ever happen again," he said.

"But the side now, for them to win, the way game’s played at the speed it’s played with all the changes, I think its just as hard to do now so I mean each has got their own merit.

“So it’s a totally different thing but if they can do three in a row I don’t think that’ll get beaten for a while just quietly.”