Hawks midfielder Shaun Burgoyne says he is excited for former teammate Luke Hodge to continue his career in Brisbane, despite the initial 'shock'.
The pair spent eight seasons together at Waverley after Burgoyne crossed from Port Adelaide at the end of 2009.
Speaking on Triple M Adelaide on Tuesday morning, Burgoyne told ‘Roo & Ditts’ that no one saw Hodge’s announcement coming.
“It was a strange one, it came as a bit of a shock to everyone.
“Everyone was preparing for him to retire, we did a little ‘Luke Hodge’ retirement circuit towards the end of the year, and then Fages conned him into going up there.”
Despite the initial surprise, Burgoyne believes the change represents a great opportunity for Hodge and his family.
“I’m really happy and excited for him,” he said.
“Fages, being at Hawthorn for a number of years, knows exactly what he wants from Hodgey and what Hodgey can provide, so it’s going to be an exciting venture for him and his young family to live up there in the sun for two years.
“I think it’s great, because you’re forever going to be retired.”
Read: Is Burgoyne the best Hawk to have started his career elsewhere?
Burgoyne, who celebrated his 35th birthday on Saturday, doesn’t appear to be entertaining any thoughts of retirement himself, with the 341-game player currently preparing for his second International Rules Series next month.
“We’re already back into training by ourselves after having three or four weeks off, so I thought why not,” Burgoyne said of his decision to play.
“I am lucky enough to have played international rules once before, and as a junior as well, so I do remember a bit about kicking the ball.”
The series pits the Australian and Irish sides against each other as they play a hybrid sport derived from the two codes, using a Gaelic football.
“It is a bit tricky, because it’s not like a normal soccer ball either, it’s a bit of an egg-shaped ball… which makes it easier to kick a snap.
“We know Eddie Betts kicks a few snaps so I’m assuming he’d be a pretty good kick of this ball.
Several prolific AFL players are set to take part in the series, including Betts, Patrick Dangerfield, Gary Ablett and Scott Pendlebury, and Burgoyne already has his starting position figured out.
“There’s some big names playing, so at this stage I reckon I’ll be starting on the bench.”
