HAWTHORN'S defence has been a major factor in the side's resurgence over the past month. The Hawks have won their past four and have pushed into the eight for the first time since round two.

After conceding an average of 102 points per game during a six-game run of outs, Hawthorn has cut the figure back to just 71 over the past month.

It's an impressive statistic, but it's not one that defender Tom Murphy is about to take credit for on behalf of the Hawks' defensive unit.

"It's got to do with an improvement across the team I think," Murphy says.

"Earlier in the year teams were getting a lot more inside-50s, but through the efforts of all 18 players on the ground we're starting to defend better as a team and that's shown in the scores that have been kicked against us in the last month.

"Sometimes when an opposition forward takes a mark people think 'oh it's that bloke's fault' but the whole team defends an opposition these days.

"You make your own luck in footy and we've really been putting in pretty big efforts in the last few weeks and that's finally showing on the scoreboard".
 
Murphy, who will play the 59th game of his career against Adelaide on Saturday, is the first to admit things weren't tracking so well for him or the team earlier in the season.

He found himself back at Box Hill for a two-game stint which is never where an AFL-listed player wants to be, but he feels it might just have set up the rest of his season.  

"It was a reminder that you can't just plod along in the AFL - you've got to keep improving," he says.

"It was a good chance for me to assess where I was at and try and improve in a few areas of my game.

"It happens to most players over the course of their careers. I needed to play better and the team wasn't winning so I went back to the twos to freshen up mentally and physically. I think I've been playing better footy since so it was a probably a good move by Clarko in the end."

Hawthorn's back six was forced into making a tough transition when the club lost Trent Croad to a career-ending injury and the process wasn’t helped by the long-term loss of new recruit Josh Gibson.

Murphy, who stands at 189cm, often found himself playing in a key defensive post last season as a result.

He's seen more action on opponents who might not be as physically imposing but are no less dangerous this year which says a fair bit about the versatility he brings to the line-up.

"Two weeks ago I played on Eddie Betts and then I played on Daniel Motlop whereas last year it was more the likes of Barry Hall," he says.

"The smaller guys can cause you just as many headaches, though, because you've got to adjust your game and they're probably more unpredictable than the big guys.

"The little fellas keep you on your toes for the whole game. There are a whole different set of challenges playing on those guys."

The Hawks may have climbed into the eight, but Murphy says the job is by no means done. The side is looking to continue to make progress each week and the same can be said for Murphy, both this year and in years to come.

"I just turned 24 in March so I still feel like I've got plenty of improvement in me which is exciting," he says.

"People say that once you reach 50 games you really start to understand what AFL footy is all about. I ticked over that milestone earlier in the year so in the next couple of years I hope to start playing more of a leadership role out on the ground as well."