It was another consistent season from Jordan Lewis in 2013 whose grunt work in the midfield is of particular importance to the side.
The Club’s Vice-Captain again showed great leadership through his actions both on the field and off it plus his professionalism when it comes to his match preparation and ability to relate to all players on the list.
Lewis played all but one game in 2013 and averaged 21.9 disposals, 4.8 marks, 3.8 tackles and almost a goal a game.
His work in the midfield is actually probably underrated, given the no-frills style of football he plays. He simply gets the job done for his team week in, week out.
While teammate Sam Mitchell often gets the plaudits, Lewis had just as good a season as the champion Hawk and in fact was second only to Mitchell in club statistics.
Lewis was ranked second at the Club in 2013 for total disposals, contested possessions, clearances and centre clearances – he was the Club’s second-best stoppage player in 2013.
Surprisingly, he was ranked number one at Hawthorn for inside 50s with 102 forward 50 entries, ahead of skipper Luke Hodge with 91 and ranked twelfth in the stat across the competition.
He was also ranked top five for uncontested possessions and tackles.
While he only once managed to gather more than 30 touches in a match this year, it was more what he did as a whole that made his impact on matches profound.
That was best illustrated when he was named third-best on ground at Peter Crimmins Medal night by the coaches for his 23 disposals, eight marks and seven tackles against Port Adelaide in Round 16 and again against the Bombers in Round 18 with 21 touches, eight marks, five tackles and two goals.
The way Lewis plays, he can take on a number of roles and perform each as well as the other, whether he’s playing as an inside midfielder, across half back or half forward. He has the versatility that his coach, Alastair Clarkson just loves and it was on show on a number of occasions this year.
He actually seemed to perform his best when the side was challenged. He was good against the Cats in Round 1 with 27 disposals and six marks, then among the best again in the thrilling victories of North Melbourne and Adelaide in Rounds 5 and 6 with 25 touches, seven marks and three tackles against the Roos and 26 possessions and eight marks against the Crows.
Lewis also had 24 disposals, five marks and three tackles against the Eagles in the hard-fought win at Etihad Stadium in Round 13 and 23 possessions, five marks and three tackles against Collingwood in the tough Round 21 victory.
He saved his best for the finals series though, as did most of his teammates and he started the build up with a 10 tackle effort to go along with 21 disposals against Sydney in Round 23.
The 26 year old backed that up with 19 touches in the Qualifying Final and despite gathering only 14 disposals in the Preliminary Final against Geelong, was an important player in the victory with his nine tackles.
His Grand Final performance was outstanding, as you’d expect from the hard-nosed midfielder who thrives on the tough, contested matches.
On the biggest stage of all, Lewis was named third-best on ground for the Hawks in the Premiership win with 26 disposals, eight marks and four tackles. He also had a game-high 10 clearances.
All in all, his role in the 2013 premiership was just reward from the midfielder who is now a dual Hawthorn premiership player.
His leadership will be important over pre-season at the Club, to show the right attitude over pre-season to ensure there is no premiership hangover. He will be enthusiastic on day one of pre-season and lead by example there is no doubt. That’s just the kind of player and person he is.
What Chris Fagan said: “Lewis was a solid contributor in the midfield; he sometimes played forward and did some good roles for us.
“He was really impressive in the Grand Final, particularly after half time with his pressure on the opposition and his tackling was outstanding.”
Lewis in the news in 2013
- Lewis says he never contemplated leaving before signing a new contract
Videos featuring Lewis in 2013
- Lewis speaks about the finals campaign
- Lewis ahead of the Round 21 game against Collingwood
