The Box Hill Hawks, Hawthorn's VFL affiliate, have enjoyed a fruitful off-season as they look to bolster their stocks for the upcoming 2017 season.
Former Port Adelaide and Richmond midfielder Andrew Moore headlines a strong group of recruits who boast experience at AFL level. Moore played 55 games at Port Adelaide before crossing to Richmond for one further year last season, where he added another five senior games.
Moore will look to provide a sense of leadership and experience to Box Hill after the club endured a disappointing 2016 campaign.
“It’s a great chance for me to continue to develop not only my overall game but my leadership as well. We want to win and we want to be successful moving forward.
“They’ve (Box Hill Hawks) been very successful over many years and that’s something that definitely attracted me to the club,” Moore told the Box Hill website.
Will Hams is another Hawks recruit with AFL experience. Having signed just before Christmas, Hams spent four years at Essendon and played 13 games throughout that time. Cruelled by injury for much of his career in the red and black, Hams has joined forces with the Hawks in pursuit of returning into the AFL system. Hams is a versatile player who will provide Senior Coach Chris Newman with much flexibility.
Hams said that, among the other clubs that approached him for his services, Box Hill appealed to him most given the club's high level of professionalism.
“I had a meeting with Chris Monaghan (List and Recruiting Manager) and Chris Newman and then had a run with the boys and was super impressed,” Hams said.
A third former AFL-listed recruit arrives in the form of Billy Evans, who played seven games for the Brisbane Lions in his two years at the club. A big-bodied inside midfielder, Evans has spoken of his desire to return to an AFL list and identified Box Hill as his best avenue for achieving this.
“I will be looking to continue to develop my game here at the Box Hill Hawks and hopefully earn my way back onto an AFL list," Evans said.
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In addition to these new recruits, the club is also excited by the returns of captain and best and fairest winner David Mirra, former North Melbourne player Max Warren and fourth-year players Mitchell O’Donnell and Ayden Kennedy.
The Box Hill Hawks are determined to reverse the disappointment of the 2016 season and will look to quickly return to the success of the previous three years, where they made the grand final each year and won the VFL premiership in 2013.
