With the 2014 season now complete, hawthornfc.com.au will review the season of those who played a senior game for the Hawks in 2014 with the help of GM - Football Operations Chris Fagan.
Isaac Smith produced his best-ever season in 2014, becoming one of the game’s most damaging wingmen.
Already well-respected and recognised for his elite running capacity, Smith added another dimension to his game this season in his ability to push forward and become a genuine goal-kicking player.
Working with fellow speedster Bradley Hill, the duo played an integral role in Hawthorn’s back-to-back premiership victories, adding that outside speed that was lacking prior to last season.
The emergence of Smith has been crucial for Alastair Clarkson and his team, with the hard-running number 16 able to break the lines, take the game on and open up the opposition’s defence by attacking through the middle.
Playing 24 of a possible 25 games, Smith enjoyed a consistent season where he averaged 22.5 disposals, 5.5 marks, 2.8 tackles and a goal a game.
His output in 2014 was rewarded by a top five placing in the Peter Crimmins Medal, an outstanding achievement in a premiership year.
While his biggest strength is his running game and capability of burning off opponents, what also makes Smith a hard man to match-up on is the fact he can play a variety of positions.
In 2014, he was tasked with becoming a dangerous weapon across half-forward and responded by kicking 24 goals – one in each game – to be ranked fourth at the Club for goals kicked this season.
He played mostly up forward against the Giants in Round 11 where he kicked four goals and even split his time inside 50 and on the wing against the Swans in Round 18, where he booted three and had 18 disposals in an outstanding performance.
Unsurprisingly, Smith was ranked number one at the Hawks for running bounces, averaging 2.7 per game, which placed him third across the whole competition.
Somewhat surprisingly though, Smith was ranked third for rebound 50s at the Club (2.5 average), which showed he worked just as hard back as he did forward given he was also ranked third for inside 50s (3.7).
He was also ranked fourth for uncontested possessions (15.2 average) and fifth for disposals per game (22.5).
Like teammate Luke Breust, his opening round performance set the tone for his season, picking up 26 disposals and kicking two goals against the Lions in Tasmania.
From there he went from strength to strength, picking up 30 disposals, 12 marks and three goals in probably his best performance of the year in Round 3 against Fremantle.
He had 29 and laid four tackles against the Saints in Round 7, had 27 in a high-quality performance in the loss to Port Adelaide where he showed leadership in a young side and had 23 and kicked four in Round 11 against GWS.
27 disposals, nine tackles and two goals was a great all-round game in Round 15 against the Suns, as was the 18 disposals, seven marks and three goals against the Swans in Round 18.
In Round 23 he had 31 disposals against Collingwood in the perfect lead-in to finals before playing his best game of the series in the Qualifying Final against the Cats.
In that game, Smith had 27 disposals, took eight marks and kicked a goal before playing a valuable role in the premiership win.
What GM – Football Operations Chris Fagan said: “He’s a running machine and took his game to another level this year. He averaged about 23 possessions per game, kicked 20-odd goals and can play in a number of positions – wing, high half forward, on ball so he’s a pretty hard player to stop.
“Teams were trying to put some time into him as the year went on but he’s a hard man to tag because of his running capability.
“His energy and enthusiasm around the Club too, has been really influential.”
Isaac Smith in the news in 2014
- Photos: The Inbetweeners visit the Hawks
- O’Rourke will complement Hill, Smith: Wright
- Hawks keen to make amends: Smith
Videos featuring Isaac Smith in 2014
- Dancing with The Inbetweeners
- #everymoment: Isaac Smith
- Red Carpet: Smith at the AFLPA MVP awards
Isaac Smith celebrates the premiership with teammate and fellow dual premiership winner, David Hale.
