The image of Shaun Burgoyne celebrating his iconic goal late in the 2013 preliminary final will forever be etched in the minds of Hawthorn fans.
As Burgoyne calmly slotted home the goal that would secure the Hawks’ place in the grand final, his young family would have beamed with pride.
Ky Burgoyne would have been eight years old, Percy four, Leni one and Nixie not yet born.
It is a moment that now signifies the beginning of one of the club’s true golden eras.
More than six years on, his four children have had the opportunity to immortalise their Dad’s special moment.
The Burgoynes, alongside the Hodges, Mitchells, Lakes, Rougheads, Lewis’, Hales and Puopolos, were recently reunited at Waverley Park to bring to life a special campaign honouring the Hawks’ unique family culture.
The campaign, launched today, is the latest iteration of the club’s ‘Always’ story, which sets to capture the meaning behind Always, a word synonymous with the club since it was first launched as the Hawks' membership tagline in 2011.
The content series involves a series of family portraits, recreation images, interviews and, most notably, a ‘premiership style’ group shot with all eight players and their children.
As the players laughed, reminisced and kicked the footy with their former teammates, one might feel as though they’d been transported back to a training session in 2015. The only difference was the 19 kids now in tow.
The morning was full of stories from the three-peat era, as the players spoke candidly about the family club at which they shared so much success.
“I may have spent a few years away, but I’ll always be a Hawthorn person and my kids will always be Hawthorn as well,” Jordan Lewis said.
“We’ve got guys now that are all at different clubs. The fact that we can always come back and feel welcome is something special,” said Jarryd Roughead.
“For four years in a row my kids did the grand final parade. It was quite a shock to them when they realised they don’t get to do that every year,” Sam Mitchell laughed.
Together, the eight featured players form a unique group; they are the only Hawks to have played in all three premierships during the three-peat who now have children of their own.
Though several of these men have since continued their playing or coaching careers with other AFL clubs, both they and their families will always be a part of the fabric here at the Hawthorn Football Club.
Pictured below: Paul and Giselle Puopolo, Jarryd and Pippa Roughead, Shaun, Ky, Percy, Leni and Nixie Burgoyne, Luke, Cooper, Chase and Leo Hodge, Sam, Smith, Scarlett and Emerson Mitchell, David, Mia, Asha and Luke Hale, Jordan, Freddie, Hughie and Ollie Lewis and Brian, Mylee and Cohen Lake.
