When analysing the ways in which Sam Mitchell goes about his football, it is difficult to understand how he maintains such a high level across each round in each year.
Mitchell is a pillar of strength, determination and is one of the best examples where players show through their actions on the field the willingness to work hard for their teammates, their coaches and their club.
In another outstanding year, Mitchell claimed his fourth Peter Crimmins Medal as the Club’s fairest and best player for the second year running.
He topped the stats in all the key performance indicators, ranked number one at the Club in disposals, clearances, tackles and contested possessions. He is a consistent performer, a reliable player in any setting, be it a Grand Final or a game against a struggling side.
When teams try to curb his influence, he rises to the challenge, like in the Qualifying Final against Collingwood when Jarryd Blair was given the job on the Hawks gun.
Mitchell responded by being one of Hawthorn’s best players, asserting himself as the most dangerous player on the ground at stoppages. In that game, he had 31 possessions and 12 clearances to be one of the most effective players on the ground.
His 12 clearances was one of four times he managed double figures in the stat, underlining his reputation as one of the best clearances players in the competition - in fact, he was ranked in the top five for clearances across the league, tallying 154 across 24 games, an average of 6.4.
He was also ranked in the top 10 for contested possessions, averaging 12.5 per match.
Mitchell is also ranked as one of the best tacklers in the competition, also ranked in the top 10 for tackles, averaging 5.5 per game.
He finished equal second in the Brownlow Medal, polling 26 votes from 24 matches and despite not earning an All Australian jumper, his performance across the year is widely recognised, earning him the reputation as being one of the competition’s premier onballers.
He rarely had a poor game, gathering less than 20 disposals on just one occasion. Picking out his games is tough given there are so many to choose from.
He was one of Hawthorn’s best in the win over Collingwood in Round 1 with 32 possessions, eight tackles and 11 clearances, then there was his game against the Kangaroos in Tasmania in Round 10. He gathered 35 disposals, laid four tackles and had eight clearances in that dominating display.
Then there was a string of 30+ possession efforts between rounds 14-17 where he gathered 32,33,34,33 disposals.
He easily could have been awarded the Best Player in Finals award by his coaches, given his impact was profound.
In the three finals games, he averaged 21.3 possessions, 5.6 tackles and 9.6 clearances.
For a player who was criticised for his lack of pace, he certainly hasn’t let it hold him back becoming one of the best midfielders the Hawks and the AFL has seen.
| GA | K | H | D | DE% | CP | UP | M | CL | T | I50 | G | PCM | |
| 2012 averages | 24 | 14.4 | 12.8 | 27.2 | 75 | 12.5 | 14.9 | 3.5 | 6.4 | 5.5 | 4.1 | 0.3 | 172 |
Sam Mitchell and Shaun Burgoyne celebrate a win in their 200th game milestones.
Mitchell in the news in 2012
Mitchell relishing midfield stability Mitchell claims fourth Peter Crimmins MedalVideos featuring Mitchell in 2012
Rnd20 Report: Mitchell PCM 2012: Mitchell's Speech How did you rate Mitchell's 2012 season? Leave your view below.
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2012 Player Reviews
