In his own words, Hawthorn Coach Alastair Clarkson describes the thought process behind the recently announced number changes…
At Hawthorn, we don’t necessarily believe in retiring jumper numbers.
So, we knew that when Hodgey and Gibbo were to move on from the club, there would be a a huge opportunity for a couple of younger players to step up and into their famous guernsey numbers.
As we now know, those two players are Blake Hardwick and James Sicily.
Read: 2018 jumper numbers revealed
When handing on a special jumper number, where possible, you try to find player who plays in a similar position or in a similar manner to those who have left the legacy of their guernsey behind.
In both of these young guys, we see a little bit of the old Gibson and Hodge.
For nearly eight years, ‘Gibbo’ has played that centre half back role superbly for us, and was a pivotal contributor in our recent success. In the latter half of last season, Sis stood up in Gibbo’s absence and took on the role with ease. In somewhat of a changing of the guard, we believed Sis stepping into the No.6 guernsey was the natural progression.
Similarly, Hodge has played with a real physicality and always showed an incredible ability to read the play throughout his 16 seasons in the brown and gold. ‘Dimma’ Hardwick was able to do exactly the same thing after consolidating his spot in the side last season.
But, it’s not just about what the players and the coaches think either; I believe there is something about the supporters that makes them think ‘well, if No.15 is going to someone, I hope it’s someone like Hodge’, and ‘if No.6 is going to someone, I hope it’s someone like Gibbo’, so this is definitely something we considered when making the decision.
Both Hodge and Gibbo have left enormous shoes to fill. They were both highly decorated and widely respected players of our footy club.
But that said, we think both Dimma and Sis thoroughly deserve this opportunity.
They deserve the chance to try and forge their own journeys in their new Hawthorn numbers.
