Watch HawksTV's exclusive one-on-one interview with Luke Hodge.

HAWTHORN Captain Luke Hodge says he still has four to five years of AFL football left after extending his contract until the end of the 2013 season.

Hodge, 28, has played just two matches so far this season, after battling calf and knee injuries in the opening half of the 2012 season.

Despite his injury troubles though, the Hawks’ skipper is confident in his body’s ability to withstand the rigors of AFL football despite public opinion.

“People are paid to have an opinion on something and it’s interesting when people don’t know how your body is on a day-to-day basis,” he said.

“I’ve just turned 28, I think I’ve still got a good four to five years left in me I think.

“I’ve been relatively lucky with the injuries I’ve had, they’ve all been fairly minor.”

The former number one draft pick is in his second year as Hawthorn captain, taking the reins from 2008 premiership captain Sam Mitchell ahead of the 2011 season.

Hodge admitted though, that he’s still learning how to best lead his team.

“When you first get it (the captaincy), you try and do everything yourself - you just want to make sure you’re doing the best job you can,” he said.

“You find out the longer you do the job that it’s easier to sit back, relax, delegate a few jobs to people and overview everything to make sure it runs smoothly.

“It’s been a little bit more frustrating being injured this year, but it’s a learning experience and every year you do it, you will improve.”

Hodge's contract extension is the final announcement of the Club's Seven in Seven campaign joining Isaac Smith, Grant Birchall, Ryan Schoenmakers, Paul Puopolo, Shane Savage and Mitchell who all inked new deals.

The Hawks utility says the signing of key players illustrates that the players believe the Club is heading in the right direction, with a bright future ahead.

“We’re at a pretty exciting time at this stage, and we’ve had some great players who have signed over the past few days so it was a pretty easy decision,” he said.


Hodge took to twitter to celebrate his signing with fans.



“The boys are playing some good football, and it’s good that the younger guys have wanted to stay with the Club.

“The Club is in a strong place on field and off field so it’s a great place to be.”