Isaac Smith wins the 2022 Norm Smith Medal after tallying a game-high 32 disposals, 11 inside 50s, and a massive 771 metres gained, to go with 12 marks, five clearances and three goals in the Cats' premiership win over the Swans.
At 33 years of age, Smith is the oldest player to win the award.
Luke Breust says the Hawks will not go easy on former teammate Isaac Smith when Hawthorn meet the Cats this week.
"I don't think there'll be any hugs or anything from us. At the end of the day, we're running out against what is now an opposition player," Breust said.
"It can be all smiles and fun and games, but once you cross that line it's game on again. If he's in the road then I'm sure the boys will be pretty happy to clean him up."
Isaac Smith informs Hawthorn of his intention to join Geelong as a restricted free agent, reportedly on a two-year deal.
"Issie has been a part of a lot of success during his time at Hawthorn and has given our club a decade of valuable service," Hawthorn GM of football Graham Wright said.
"As an unrestricted free agent, Issie exercised his right to explore the market, that's the nature of the mechanism of free agency. We wish Issie and his family all the best in their next chapter."
Ben Stratton will captain the Hawthorn Football Club for a second-straight season in 2020, with six other players making up the rest of the leadership group.
Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O'Meara have been named co-vice captains, with Mitchell joining the leadership group for the first time.
Jack Gunston was the sole vice-captain last year, but has chosen to relinquish his title. Gunston has remained in the leadership group however, with Isaac Smith, Liam Shiels, Ben McEvoy rounding out the group.
"It's been a big 12 months of development, both for us as leaders and for the wider playing group," Stratton said.
"I'm confident the experience and lessons learned will only strengthen my leadership going forward, and I'm excited to see what 2020 brings."
Hawthorn will consider resting wingman Isaac Smith for the next three weeks as it takes an ultra-cautious approach with his ongoing foot injury.
"You just can't muck around with those foot injuries, they take a long while to settle sometimes and this one's taken particularly long," Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson said.
"I feel like he turned a corner mid-week this week and he wanted to play, and he was close (but) we just thought we were going to ramp him up too steeply."
Tom Mitchell caps his Brownlow Medal-winning 2018 season with a second straight Peter Crimmins Medal as Hawthorn's club champion.
Mitchell polled 163 votes to finish well ahead of runner-up Blake Hardwick (127) and Isaac Smith (125)
"To receive an award that's voted on by your coaches – not only on the way you perform, but the values we hold as a club – is pretty special," Mitchell said.
"I think just to receive the Peter Crimmins award, with obviously such a great heritage and history that the Crimmins family has at our club, is a great feeling."
Jarryd Roughead will remain captain of Hawthorn in 2018.
Roughead will again be supported by dual vice-captains Isaac Smith and Liam Shiels, while Jack Gunston and Ben Stratton have also been retained in the leadership group after a player vote.
"2017 provided some really good learnings for me and I feel like I’ve continued to develop and grow into the role," Roughead said.
"Captaining the Hawks is a real honour and to be backed in by your teammates for another year is extra special."
Hawthorn is rallying behind Isaac Smith after he was subjected to a barrage of abuse on social media in the wake of the narrow loss to Geelong where Smith failed to convert a shot on goal that would have won the game for the Hawks.
"They're keyboard warriors that get stuck into players when incidents happen in games, so as a football club and myself personally, I don't think that should happen," teammate Luke Breust said.
"There's so many things that happen in a game of football and unfortunately for him he was the one that had the final kick. He had the opportunity to win the game for us, but not actually lose it for us.
"I'd back him in on the run every time and he'll continue to do that."
Isaac Smith finds himself being a hot topic on social media after failing to convert a shot at goal that would have given the Hawks the win against Geelong.
With seven seconds left in the game, Smith marked the ball just inside the 50m arc from a Jack Gunston kick, but played on instead of taking the set shot.
"I wasn't quite sure if I marked it outside 50 or inside 50, so I wasn't quite sure on the distance," Smith said.
"I saw I had time and space in front of me and usually on the run I don't miss, and yesterday I did."
The moment drew instant comparisons to Smith's miss in last year's qualifying final against Geelong at the MCG when he failed to convert a set shot after the siren.
"Lightning strikes twice and you wouldn't think it would happen twice against the same team in under 12 months, but it has," Smith said.
"Social media has been pretty interesting the last 24 hours.
"I've had a few giggles and there's been a few interesting comments but it's also nice, there's a lot of messages of support."
Isaac Smith backs the AFL's much-discussed deliberate rushed behind rule after Richmond's Jayden Short was penalised against the Bombers.
The free kick against Short came after he won a foot race to the goal square against Essendon's Josh Green then elected to slide with the ball across the line.
Green had given up on the chase and was a few metres behind.
Tigers coach Damien Hardwick was adamant the umpire in question "made a mistake", but Smith had a different take.
"I like the rushed behind rule and I think it's good for the game and the spectators if the ball is kept in," Smith said.
"It's actually a little bit of a bugbear of mine – I'm sick of the commentators and everyone speaking about it.
"I think, 'Keep the ball in as much as you can, if you're not under too much pressure'."
Isaac Smith says it is time to move on after his post-siren shot in last week's qualifying final sailed wide and handed victory to Geelong.
"I actually felt pretty relaxed and was pretty realistic about it and thought if I kick it we win it and if I don't we lose," Smith said.
"Off the boot I actually though it was going through. It felt really nice off the boot. I think there was a photo in one of the papers of me starting to celebrate and then as it got it about halfway I saw the ball starting to turn over and I thought, not good, this is going to be a fun 48-72 hours.
Several of his teammates, including Sam Mitchell, Liam Shiels and Jordan Lewis, have taken to the airwaves this week to support Smith, backing the 27-year-old as one of the best players at Hawthorn to have the ball if a similar situation arose again.
"It's fantastic the support I got over the weekend and even the last couple of days," Smith said.
"A lot of people in the industry sent me texts or gave me a call. A lot of family and friends sent me texts and gave me a call. I guess the last thing you want is for people to take pity on you as well. You want to be able to move on."
"We live to fight another day. It was a great moment to have and I'd love to have it again this weekend as well."
Ahead of his first meeting against his old side, new Bulldog Matthew Suckling has revealed a text message from an ex-teammate has given him a sneaky suspicion of what awaits him at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
The 27-year-old is glad to get the initial encounter "out of the way" early in the season and suspects a life-long mate could be his opponent at the opening bounce.
"Isaac Smith sent me a text with our magnets next to each other (on the whiteboard), so hopefully that happens throughout the course of the night," Suckling said.
"(There's been) a few sly comments here and there, and I'm sure they'll continue right up to the game.
"It's definitely a different week because I spent a lot of time (at Hawthorn) and formed a lot of great friendships, but I'm on the other side now and I'm looking forward to it."
Isaac Smith signs a two-year contract extension with Hawthorn that will keep him at the club until the end of 2018.
"My family have now become attached to the club and my partner's obviously got a lot of friends around here as well. It's a great little community," Smith said.
"Also success is a big thing as well. We're a successful club and everyone here is doing their bit to make sure that we’re successful and we go out and deliver on the weekends."
Isaac Smith signs a two-year contract extension with Hawthorn that will keep him at the club until the end of 2016.
"When you find those special friendships and relationships, you just don't want to leave them because you're having a good time and there's no point putting a spanner in the works," Smith said.
"We all get along well, and there's a good bunch of blokes coming through around the 21-25 age bracket, so there's a nice core group of us there who are all good mates.
"I'm just happy that they put something on the table and I'm really just happy to be here for another few years.
"It's a pretty special place. You feel welcome and wanted around here, so it's a good place to be."
Talented young Hawthorn midfielder Isaac Smith has signed a new two-year deal with the club.
"I didn't even think of moving; I always wanted to stay at the Hawks so I was happy to put pen to paper," Smith told the Herald Sun.
"There is a great group of young fellas coming through, which has brought a lot of energy and excitement into the club, and I think you can see that on field."
Wednesday, 9 May 2012
Hawthorn's Isaac Smith says he still laughs about AFL CEO Andrew Demetriou pronouncing his surname as Omith and not Smith at the 2011 Brownlow Medal count.
"I was having a few beers so I didn't realise, but I soon found out about it because my phone got flooded with text messages," Smith said.
"So I'm now Isaac Omith, not Smith. A few of my mates still joke about it. Hopefully I can get a few votes this year, which will correct the situation."
Exciting Hawthorn wingman Isaac Smith has started negotiations over a new deal, saying he wants to stay at the club.
"I'm just going through a few things [with Hawthorn] at the moment, so we're seeing where we're at," Smith said.
"Hopefully it gets over and done with pretty quickly. I want to be at Hawthorn, so hopefully it all comes through."
Wednesday, 11 January 2012
Isaac Smith reflects on his long road to the AFL.
Growing up in Cootamundra, NSW, Smith took a gap year after high school before moving to country Victoria to complete a sports management degree at the University of Ballarat.
There he played footy for Redan, before a call up from VFL side North Ballarat midway through the 2010 season. His performances at senior level attracted the attention of Hawthorn who took a punt on the goalkicking midfielder.
"The hardest thing is coming in at 22 and then realising that in five years' time I'm going to be 27," Smith said.
"Really, I've only got a short period to make it count. I had to work hard and did it a completely different way to a lot of other guys in the game. I'm just going to try and make the most of it."
Saturday, 20 August 2011
First-year Hawk Isaac Smith is learning to enjoy his footy again after spending most of his early career taking it a bit too seriously.
"I reckon early on I sort of got in a bad headspace, with viewing footy as a business and not enjoying it," Smith said.
"I always played footy to enjoy it with my mates and have fun. So I just thought, 'you know what? Bugger it. If I'm going to play footy, I'm going to enjoy it'.
"That's the reason I started playing and that's the reason I've always played, (but) you can get caught up in it all."
Sunday, 19 June 2011
Hawk Isaac Smith says he enjoys playing at Aurora Stadium after notching 21 touches against Gold Coast at the ground.
"There's a lot of pressure for spots in the side when everyone's up and about, so you have to play really well when the opportunity presents itself," Smith said.
"I was blowing a bit, but my fitness is really good. Being the sort of player I am, I will drift in and out of the game a little bit."
Friday, 6 May 2011
Isaac Smith makes his AFL debut for Hawthorn at Football Park with 21 disposals (12 kicks and 9 handballs), 6 marks, 2 tackles and a goal in a 32-point win over Port Adelaide.
Monday, 29 November 2010
Hawthorn draftee Isaac Smith says Michael Barlow and James Podsiadly have broadened the recruiter's horizons, allowing older players to play AFL.
"I'm just happy that Barlow and Podsiadly have opened the door and created some hype around VFL players because there are a lot of good players running around," Smith said.