This is how the Hawks could pull off a heist for the ages

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All the pieces are coming together for Hawthorn – but plenty of questions and intrigue remain.

The Hawks have re-signed in-demand free agent Mitch Lewis and resurgent veteran Jack Gunston in the days since this masthead revealed that Gold Coast spearhead Ben King was set to accept Hawthorn’s six-year restricted free agency offer.

Lewis could have earned more money if he went to Collingwood, but never met with any other clubs or entertained rival offers.

Gold Coast star Ben King wants to continue his career back in Melbourne with the Hawks.AFL Photos

The 27-year-old will instead remain in brown and gold for another four seasons after kicking 30 goals in a career-most 18 games so far this season, with the Hawks confident he and King – both near, or taller than, 200 centimetres – will complement one another.

Zach Merrett is next on Hawthorn’s hit list, which also includes contracted Sun Bailey Humphrey, but their pursuit of the ex-Essendon captain could be tied to whatever call Gold Coast make on King.

The Suns will undoubtedly score band-one compensation for the prolific forward – which would currently be pick No.6, off Gold Coast’s ladder position – or could match Hawthorn’s terms and instead broker a trade, where none of the Hawks’ selections would be anywhere near No.6.

King’s impending departure is a blow to the Suns, but coach Damien Hardwick insists it “won’t be the end of the world” if he leaves.

A brutally tough 2026 for Damien Hardwick and his Suns could be about to get a whole lot worse.Getty Images

Technically, Hawthorn could also offer their 2027 and 2028 first-round selections in any King deal if Gold Coast matched.

But a scenario where the Hawks have to trade for King would complicate the possibility of them trading for Merrett, who remains firmly in their sights 12 months after a failed bid to bring him to the club.

Hawthorn offered three first-rounders and fringe midfielder Henry Hustwaite to the Bombers for Merrett last year. Essendon countered with an outlandish request of four first-round picks and a future second-rounder, knowing the Hawks would never accept those terms.

Merrett, who has switched back to CDG Sports for his representation, turns 31 in October and has just one season left on his contract, so Hawthorn’s offer will be more modest than last year.

How much more modest is the question, but there is a serious possibility the Hawks might not be willing to part with more than one first-round selection among whatever the overall package ends up being.

It would be a significant surprise if the struggling Bombers refused to trade Merrett again, but that doesn’t mean they are going to give him away, either – and nor should they.

The other fascination in all this is how King’s arrival impacts Mabior Chol, who turns 30 in January but has been a key part of Hawthorn’s attack since signing from Gold Coast, as well as younger talls Calsher Dear and Will McCabe.

McCabe was a first-round pick three years ago, but has only four AFL games to his name (three of which came in recent weeks).

The Hawks have reached a point under Sam Mitchell where they are perennial premiership contenders, a status that will only heighten with King up forward.

Sam Mitchell’s ‘Hollywood Hawks’ are set to take things up a notch this off-season.Getty Images

The ideal situation for them is that players such as Dear, McCabe, Aidan Schubert and Noah Mraz are willing to patient, while stuck behind experienced teammates at either end of the ground.

Schubert and Mraz have extended until 2029 and 2028, respectively, whereas Dear and McCabe – who are both father-son selections – are out of contract at season’s end.

Dear played 17 of his 31 games in his debut 2024 campaign, benefiting from a very different Hawthorn forward line, including Lewis appearing only four times because of an ACL rupture.

Mitchell praised Dear on Thursday for his resilience while toiling away in the VFL, and remains optimistic he has a bright future at the club despite his limited senior opportunities at the moment.

For that young group, the glass-half-full view is that Gunston is entering what will probably be his final year in 2027, Chol is about to be on the wrong side of 30 and has just one season left on his contract, and Lewis has had several serious injury interruptions.

There will be suitors for Dear and McCabe if they explore alternative options.

In the back of their minds should be someone such as former clubmate Sam Frost, who opted to stay at the Hawks and knock back Sydney’s and St Kilda’s interest in 2024.

That decision coincided with Tom Barrass and Josh Battle arriving at Hawthorn. Frost ended up playing only two matches last year and is now out of the AFL.

The main difference is that Dear and McCabe are 20 years old, whereas Frost was 31 when he made his call.

The Hawks are obviously willing to risk losing them for the upside of what King could deliver, but would love to keep them all and bring in Merrett, too, at the right price.

This is all Hawthorn’s fantasy. Can they rely on Essendon and Gold Coast to make it a reality?

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