Hawthorn are playing down the old-school tactics reportedly adopted by the team after the club's shock loss last weekend on the Gold Coast.
Players reported that coach Alastair Clarkson approved the consumption of at least two slabs of beer after the 86-point loss as part of a post-match, soul-searching session in the wake of an eight-day break leading into the Easter Monday clash with Geelong.
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But the Hawks have claimed the session was part of a prearranged function at the team hotel where the players stayed overnight. The club's media boss said the plan was not Clarkson's and would have happened regardless of the result.
Coaching great Clarkson has been responsible for plenty of complex tactical masterstrokes for more than a decade at the helm of the Hawks, with industry and club sources telling Fairfax Media that Clarkson bought beers for his players in a bid to rouse his side from its slumber.
![Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson.](/web/20170415131334im_/http://www.theage.com.au/content/dam/images/g/v/l/8/s/3/image.related.articleLeadwide.620x349.gvkscw.png/1492159710947.jpg)
In any case, with the longer break before the traditional public-holiday date with Geelong at the MCG, the Hawks used the chance afforded by the extended layoff by enjoying a controlled drinking session after their stunning loss to the previously under-siege Suns – a loss that left Hawthorn on the bottom of the ladder. Because of the break, the drinking did not break any team alcohol rules.
The club's search for a new chief executive has narrowed down to two, with St Kilda's chief operating officer Ameet Bains sticking to his decision to remove himself from the recruitment process. Bains has told the Saints he will remain at the club helping to oversee the move from Seaford back to Moorabbin.
It is understood the final two candidates will present to the Hawthorn board during the next week with a new boss to be appointed by the end of the month. The club's former CEO Stuart Fox resigned in December to take the top job at the MCG.Â
The lack of a permanent chief executive and the departure of experienced football boss Chris Fagan were highlighted internally after three-time premiership captain Luke Hodge was suspended on the eve of the season for missing training, kicking off a dismal start to the 2017 season.
The doomsayers have circled around Hawthorn this week following the latest of their defeats, especially following their controversial move to offload veterans Sam Mitchell and Jordan Lewis at the end of last season.
While high-priced recruit Jaeger O'Meara has largely been serviceable in his early appearances for the Hawks, the former Suns midfielder will miss the match against the Cats with knee soreness, which the club says is precautionary given his history of knee issues.Â
The Hawks are confident O'Meara will be fit to face West Coast next weekend. They remain without four-time premiership defender Grant Birchall, who suffered a fractured jaw in the round-two loss to Adelaide.
Hawks vice-captain and three-time premiership midfielder Liam Shiels said on Thursday that the Hawks "need to start demanding more from each other".
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