Sam Mitchell

Overlooked in the 2000 national draft, Sam Mitchell forced his way onto an AFL list via the VFL, winning the JJ Liston Trophy at Box Hill before being selected by Hawthorn with pick 36 in the celebrated 2001 'Superdraft'. Despite initial concerns over his pace, he established himself as one of the modern era's premier midfielders through elite spatial awareness and an uncanny ability to dispose of the ball effectively on both feet. A stoppage specialist, Mitchell became renowned for his capacity to extract the ball from heavy congestion and execute play with surgical precision, often spinning out of trouble to find space where none appeared to exist.

Mitchell was the on-field architect of Hawthorn's golden era, captaining the side to the 2008 premiership and serving as a key lieutenant during the historic 2013-2015 three-peat. His individual consistency was unrivalled at the club, underlined by five Peter Crimmins Medals and the 2012 Brownlow Medal. In a pragmatic move at the end of 2016 that surprised the football public, he was traded to West Coast to facilitate a transition into coaching. He played one final season for the Eagles, providing veteran leadership and intellectual property to their midfield group, before retiring to pursue his coaching ambitions full-time.