'They're all lunatics' Chief returns home to put the Mosquito Fleet under the microscope | Fox Footy

go all right this should be fun chatting to an exciting crop of small forward types at the Hawks we Conor McDonald Nick Watson Jack ginan and Dylan Morin thanks for your time what do we call this group few names what do you guys like running with uh the mozzies sometimes yeah mosquito Fleet M said the mosquito Fleet that's what they like to call themselves what about the coach now he wasn't a big celebrator I mean we know he was a star player and he appears to be absolutely flying early days as a coach how does he handle the extroverted nature of your celebrations and and the way you go about your business he loves it I reckon he uh he sent me the I did that one on the weekend and he actually sent me a soccer play doing it so that's where I got the inspo from I reckon our forline coach Adrian hikm he loves it as well yeah he's probably been the biggest driver besides from The Lads it's pretty much been hick like every meeting he be like boys having fun on the week and what do you got for us this week like you better be celebrating otherwise I'll get angry at you so our Monday review sometime is why didn't you celebrate enough really yeah wow that's exciting now Bruce's got his 300th you've got your H hundredth coming up this weekend there's a mentor relationship in that Dylan is it yeah absolutely I think probably from my third year onwards he really took me under his wing and showed me the ropes and um very grateful of him because he's been such a legend I think just on and off the field just teaching me a lot of little tricks I didn't grow up as a Ford I grew up as midfielder so coming into AFL he was the one that really taught me all Ford craft and I've been able to learn a lot from him and especially his work inside 50 is tremendous like he's been one of the best small Fords and most consistent small forwards of the past 15 years so to be able to lean on him a lot has been really special all right let's let's just talk serious for a moment 0 and5 things aren't going great and it's probably where a lot of people thought ha will be down in the bottom half of the table what changed Mory commented when he was at the airport bringing mouth guards to training and I think that Gold Coast game was the biggest flip around for us so um we changed a few things um within training well training and um the game um and then we were just able to turn it around um but I think we just became a bit more serious we weren't happy with where where we were at um and then ultimately we were able to win some more games and and get on a rooll cuz it wasn't just it wasn't just the numbers I North Melbourne were expected to be down the bottom anyway so it was probably a a semi expected win anyway to break the draft but what got into your head because I I've heard from a few people that you wanted to say a few things yeah I think the media have blown that up around the mouth guards and but it was a conversations the night before that really drove it it wasn't my comments in the media it was the change rooms after the go CR game where we all sat around similar to this and it was just like why are we here do we want to be here and we all had really honest conversations with with each other as a playing group with no coaches and that was the first probably part of my career where I've actually understood what standards are needed to win a Premiership and we had Premiership players in the room who actually spoke up and said yeah this isn't where we need to be this isn't where we want to be like let's be better and I think from that then everyone's just put in an extra 5 10% and that's all it's needed in AFL is to gain an extra 5 or 10% and then you can be a lot better off so there was a lot around the conversations beforehand and then yeah mouth guards in the media it's just blown enough a bit it's great leadership though but that can be confronting for the young BLS how did you guys handle that when all of a sudden things aren't going great and players are starting to talk well I I thought it was yeah a great conversation to had to be honest like we didn't start well but it felt like around the group we were still happy still still celebrating and that's what we love about the group like we were we weren't winning but we were celebrating having fun we just the results were working so um yeah the conversations were hard and um yeah I feel like it was a positive thing that needed to happen and then since that moment we've just taken everything in our stride and everything has been yeah nearly perfect from that point on to be honest first year in the system for you Nick what was that like yeah it was a bit of a roller coaster so yeah started early on and lost a few in the row then had injury as well through the ankle so um yeah took me bit a bit to get back to my form but I'm loving this end part of the season and um hopefully continues on for another couple of weeks and we spoke to you Friday night and I asked you about working on your goal kicking yeah and there was a little line you said that was always going to come so you've obviously been doing some hard work but I believe Mitch is actually Sam Mitchell's the one that thought we need to be consistent in our voice here and it's just he and you talking yeah it wasn't much like him teaching me the technique of how to kick goals like I grew up kicking goals so he knew he believed me in me in that part but um it was just yeah the one voice was the most important thing and um yeah it's obviously sign to pay off a bit now but no I just really all I needed just one voice and he took initiative does it surprise you boys to know that he just said no it'll come a little bit of Confidence from The Young fell no I don't all right let's go back to the round 10 game Fort adate obviously it's coming up this week you had that game essentially sewn up but you lost from what most people would say was nearly UNL mind you the way the game's played these days nothing's unusable what have you learned from that situation as your hip prepare to head back there again yeah the biggest thing we learned was actually the week before in the review I think we beat St kilder in tazzy but we didn't kick a goal in the last quarter but because we won we didn't worry about it and then in next week we're up by 30 and we go a bit more defensive as a playing group as a coaching group we all went a little bit more defensive and we kicking go last quarter and Port was a kick six or seven and it was just like we didn't review this week before because we got the result we wanted so I think the biggest learning from everyone from that was just like we got to play the same way no matter what and we got to review the little things so even this week There's a few things in the doggies game that didn't go our way and we're like all right well we can't do that again this week otherwise we'll get touched up so feel like that's been the biggest learning by far is there anything surprising you the way the Hawks are going I mean the last 15 weeks has been ridiculous has it actually surprised you yeah I think it's surprised everyone like the whole external world is so surprised but loving it but I think even though we're losing at the start like we were just sticking to our system and we knew that was going to work um and when we play our best footy um we match it with everyone in the competition so I think all of us had that inner belief um we just had to get it right for longer periods of time and um I think yeah we've excited ourselves so much and um everyone else um that's watched us so we just had to get it right and we have and um made finals now so we're just trying to see how good we can have it for as long as we can all right we need you to give us a little bit of insight into the coach he did have a parting shot four you guys came in and said they're all lunatics they're all imbeciles but we know him as a great player we know he's coaching really well but a lot of people out there don't quite know what makes him tick and how does he handle all you guys and and what's it like daily life here at the club with Mitch he's got a good balance I feel like with Rel relationships outside the club as well like he um I feel like he has a pretty strong connection with all the boys in the group it's not just like sort of singled out or um he's got his favorites and whatnot so um he just gets around every run he's like cuz he's still still pretty young so um I feel like yeah sometimes he just wants to be part of the boys tries to get out on the track and get smashed and then that's him done for the day so um n but that's the one thing I found in my first year I get along with him pretty well yeah he just like he knows when when to be serious and when not to as well like um you know we have this probably rule 48 hours so canate 48 hours and then when we get in on Monday or Tuesday whenever it is then then it's time to switch on again so you know he's got that really good balance between having fun and then when it's time to go we go and um yeah he's been amazing for me for my first year as well cuz you're an interesting one Jack and no one I don't care about comparing Club to club and what the environments were like but I suspect you're not an easy character to work out all the time what to handle so it would be an interesting relationship you personally with Mitch yeah I think me and Mitch are um probably pretty similar in the way we act sometimes like you you probably don't see Mitch around the club but he's very cheeky and uh you know cheeky drive by comments and things like that which is which is how I exactly well yeah so we're pretty pretty similar and um yeah so we bounce of each other we both love the game of footy as well so he's been so easy to connect with and um yeah he's been so amazing for me all right time to include a few of your other teammates who are the weirdest BLS at the club weirdest um Jack scrim show screed what does he do what does scrims do a lot I don't think we can say anything okay okay who else de Grand brass yeah few zesty customers isn't it funny I'm talking to forwards and I ask for the weirdest bles you go bman bman bman backman weirman boring uh what's the best part of being at the haon football club getting to coming to work and be with your best mates um it's pretty fun like these three here um it's just so exciting come together Play Good footy um hang out as mates um and just getting to coming to work every day like it's pretty special um and go there and kick goals and celebrate with the crowd um I think we got the best job in the world especially after a Winn as well coming back in to work it's lot better feeling yeah we I feel like we just work so hard on the track and we enjoy working hard like we'll be out there today and it's like 2 hours of just hard work but we enjoy it as well little breaks will Sledge each other and have funs fun in like a lot of the little games which I really enjoy is we'll do a little 4minute drill and it doesn't mean a lot but we make it mean a lot and we admire the little things in those drills and then when game day comes around it's so much fun just for two hours it's just like buzzing around the floor line with the mozzies it's just like it's so much fun it's a great mindset to have so outside of footy we'll go down the line start at your end D it Hobbies pastimes what do you do away from the game love just going to cafes finding nice coffee spots that's a big one for me I study Commerce just on the side just try to get it done but it's a bit of a grind um but yeah I try to have a hit of golf a little bit not very good but um I do a few different little things just to keep me occupied okay uh yeah pretty similar love going to cafes down the beach um done to some forces near Al Parks good um yeah pretty pretty reserved guy like basketball like you say pretty reserved guy yeah like outside of footy just like pretty chill um and a bit of pool sharks I love playing pool as well all right what about you Nick um yeah I'm pretty chill I was see mates go out for dinner and whatnot um pretty good squash as well so squash that's good at that and Tennis didn't say play he said I'm pretty good at squ too good at tennis as well basketball but yeah chill very nice yeah just catching up with the mates um going to get a coffee same as these BS um I enjoy my music as well I know guine and W do as well so um if we find new songs here or there try and Sham around it's pretty fun one more on the count of three who's the hardest worker in the group one two three oh you point at me boys not him where were you pointing oh that's interesting okay who did you say Nick I said my all you've basically all gone different oh beautiful guys really enjoyed catching up um great to have a little bit of fun enjoy what you're doing keep enjoying it and hope you get the results you're looking for thank you