CEO Justin Reeves has penned the following letter to Hawthorn members...
Hi everyone,
As most of you are probably now aware, the AFL yesterday confirmed that we will complete the remainder of the 2020 home and away season outside of Victoria.
We departed for Sydney with an initial plan to be on the road for 32 days but have always maintained the mindset that we will need to be flexible and agile. Wednesday’s announcement confirms that we will now remain on the road for up to 10 weeks and is yet another example of why we must embrace the mentality of “riding the bumps with a grin” in 2020.
There is no doubt that an extended period away from Victoria poses various challenges for some of our people, particularly those with loved ones back home. However, we will work with all our players, coaches, and staff to ensure they are supported and that where possible their families are able to join us on the journey.
We are lucky in a sense, that our next four weeks look set to remain as planned. We will play Melbourne and Sydney here in NSW, before heading west to face Carlton, West Coast and Fremantle at Optus Stadium. Following this, we remain committed to playing games in our home away from home, Tasmania. We are working with the AFL and the Tasmanian government to make this possible.
Despite some of the obstacles, the overwhelming response from everyone within the travelling party remains one of resilience and positivity. We continue to look for the opportunities and understand the privilege we currently have to be able to be playing footy. We also acknowledge, the situation back home in Melbourne and are focused on bringing joy and entertainment to our 70,000-plus Hawthorn family.
While we have had some disappointing performances thus far in NSW, we are determined to turn this around on Sunday. We see the next 10 weeks on the road as an opportunity to repay your ongoing loyalty and commitment and each time a new challenge is thrown our way, we continue to be buoyed by the wave of support rolling in from our members.
On behalf of everyone involved with the club, thank you. Hawthorn would most certainly not be here without you and rest assured we remain committed to keeping you connected and engaged with us over the coming months. Member Exclusive content, opportunities to ask questions directly to our players and key personnel, and innovative ways of bringing you inside the inner sanctum remain at the forefront of our minds. Myself and Graham Wright undertook a Facebook Live today to answer any questions that were thrown our way. We want to keep you informed along every step of the journey and will look to do more of these over the course of the hub period.
Thank you again for your ongoing support and please stay safe.
Go Hawks,
Justin Reeves
