LAST week, in the first 15 seconds of the last quarter, Hawthorn’s Shaun Burgoyne thrilled watchers when he used his left foot to flick a high kick from Cyril Rioli back to himself before it had touched the ground, then turned his Melbourne opponent James Frawley inside out and charged into an open goal.

"It did flash in my head to do a little soccer kick - like the soccer players with the ball coming in high, they keep it at their feet," Burgoyne said. "As the ball came in, Frawley had me outbodied pretty well and I thought I would try to flick it up to myself … and it actually worked."

It’s worth noting that Burgoyne laughed with boyish wonder at this point in our conversation. With teammates, he often mucks around hacky sack-style with footballs and soccer balls, but even he was pleasantly surprised when his attempt worked. 

"If I tried it again, I’m not sure it would work. It was a little bit of a freak moment where I had to look back and see actually how it happened," he said.

"It does feel good when you try something and it does exactly what you intended it to do."

As defensive pressure increases, the skills of the game will respond in kind.

More time training means previously unthinkable acts can happen at rare moments when skill and preparation meets circumstance, and instinct takes over.

"There are some players out there who can just do what they want with the footy," Burgoyne said.

His unpredictable act, however, provoked a predictable response from teammates. "They’re quick to jump on it and let me know it may have been a fluke."

No back patting at the Hawks. As of Wednesday, kicking coach David Rath had not even mentioned it. "I’ve actually spoken to him about the two set shots I had that were points," Burgoyne said with a chuckle.