Sam Mitchell incident that put Hawthorn players on notice and turned their AFL season around

AFL great Jimmy Bartel has heaped praise on Sam Mitchell after the Hawthorn coach helped snap his club's six-year finals drought with a resounding win over North Melbourne in the final round. And the three-time premiership winner singled out a fiery spray from Mitchell early in the season that sparked a stunning run of form for the Hawks and an eventual seventh-placed finish at the end of the home-and-away season.

Hawthorn will square off against the Western Bulldogs in an elimination final at the MCG on Friday week, having finished their third AFL season under Mitchell with a win-loss record of 14-9. Mitchell is a club legend at Hawthorn after winning four premierships with the Hawks but his first two seasons as coach ended in 13th and 16h-placed finishes on the ladder, with the 41-year-old overseeing a transitional period at the club.

The Hawks still appeared to be a work in progress in 2024 after slumping to a 1-6 record early in the season, with Mitchell called out over a fierce quarter-time tirade towards Jack Scrimshaw, during a loss to the Sydney Swans. The incident made headlines at the time and Mitchell defended himself over a wave of backlash after insisting Scrimshaw “enjoys being coached like that”.

Few could have predicted after the explosive scenes that the Hawks would turn around their form so drastically that they'd end up playing finals footy in 2024. In fact, the Hawks' record after Mitchell's spray reads 13 wins for just three losses, with Bartel singling it out as a turning point for the club's fortunes this season. Mitchell proved he wasn't prepared to compromise his standards for anyone and would happily put players on notice if they weren't putting in.

Jimmy Bartel praises Sam Mitchell's coaching exploits in 2024

The Geelong legend contrasted Mitchell's early season spray with the joyous scenes he shared with his players after Saturday's win over the Kangaroos secured their spot in the finals. Mitchell was seen joking with his team and hugging players after the final siren on Saturday and Bartel said the two incidents showed an "emotional intelligence" that is crucial to coaching success.

"You can be happy, you can enjoy the game and you can win. And for a guy who's still very young in coaching terms, I think that's been the big tick on him," Bartel said about Mitchell on Nine's Footy Furnace. "And I mentioned the players when they talk in the media about their coach, it's that emotional intelligence - he knows when to push hard and also when to cuddle and enjoy the wins and enjoy the moments."

Hawthorn surged into their first finals series since 2018 on the back of five wins from their past six games after starting the season winless from their first five. Mitchell said he was buoyed by the team's performances early in the season despite not getting the results on the scoreboard but warned his in-form team that they'll need to go to another level if they hope to go deep in the finals series.

"We're going to have to be consistent for another four games if we're going to get all the way ... winning finals is tough to do but we've given ourselves a chance," Mitchell said. "We wanted to build a team ... a game style that stands up in finals footy. Now we're in finals footy and time will tell. I'm confident that it will (stand up). The great challenge for us now is 'what is the ceiling?' I've never put one on."

Mitchell's Hawks got the better of their finals opponents, the Western Bulldogs, when the sides met in round eight - the first game after the Hawthorn coach delivered his infamous spray for Scrimshaw. The Hawks claimed a seven-point win in the only game they've played against the Dogs this season and will expect another tense battle against against Luke Beveridge's side, who defeated GWS on Sunday to finish the season in sixth.

AFL week one finals schedule:

• Second qualifying final: Port Adelaide v Geelong - Thursday September 5, Adelaide Oval, 7.40pm

• Second elimination final: Western Bulldogs v Hawthorn - Friday September 6, MCG, 7.40pm

• First qualifying final: Sydney v GWS - Saturday September 7, SCG, 3.20pm

• First elimination final: Brisbane Lions v Carlton - Saturday September 7, Gabba, 7.30pm