HAWTHORN defender Grant Birchall believes the Hawks have done all they can over summer to ensure they are premiership contenders in 2011, including perfecting their reworked game plan.

It was the Hawks' first pre-season under the new plan, which was instigated early last season when coach Alastair Clarkson realised the game had passed their 2008 premiership-winning model by.

Birchall says with the time put into the game plan combined with the potential of the list, the Hawks are primed to rise back up this year.

"Towards the end of last year we changed our game style around a bit and we had the whole pre-season to work on that," Birchall said on Friday.

"We go into this pre-season confident and hopefully the game plan can stand up.

"If you look at our list, it's pretty good and there's a lot of potential there and the past couple of years have been pretty disappointing.

"We need to perform and we've done all the work to do so, so we can only go out there and do what we can, and hopefully results will be great."

The 23-year-old said the changes hadn't really affected the back six, although acknowledged there would be a new member of the permanent defensive set up following the departure of Campbell Brown to Gold Coast.

"Kyle Cheney from Melbourne has performed really well over the last couple of weeks so he'll put his hand up for selection," he said.

"We've got Rick Ladson who's up and about, fit and ready to go as well, so there's a couple of options there that the match committee will have to think about."

Birchall named draftees Paul Puopolo and Isaac Smith as players who could potentially debut in round one against Adelaide on March 26.

After a slow start to his own pre-season while he managed the hamstring that affected him late last season, the Tasmanian backman had a good summer that saw him spend time in the midfield during the NAB Cup/Challenge series.

However, he said he was likely to remain a part of the back six throughout the season rather than run through the middle.

Birchall was one of six players to train in their junior club jumper on Friday to highlight the importance of grassroots football.

He donned Devonport's strip alongside Michael Osborne (Labrador), Chance Bateman (York), Cyril Rioli (St Marys), Shaun Burgoyne (Mallee Park) and Matt Suckling (Wagga Tigers).

"It's a community initiative celebrating grassroots footy and it's great to get into the guernsey again," he said.

"It's been a fair while ago since I wore the jumper as it's my sixth year here at Hawthorn.

"I spent a couple of years down there and it was good fun, and I have great memories."