A stunning behind-the-scenes revelation from a recently ousted AFL coach has sent ripples through Australian Rules football, with Hawthorn head coach Sam Mitchell breaking his silence on the bombshell.
Brad Scott, who left his role as Essendon senior coach earlier this week following a dismal stretch of just one win from 24 matches in charge, dropped the unexpected bombshell during an appearance on the *Agenda Setters* podcast Tuesday night. In the interview, Scott confirmed that he had personally supported trading star Essendon midfielder Zach Merrett to Hawthorn during the last trade period, a move that ultimately fell through and left Merrett at the club.
The failed trade attempt came amid growing tension at Essendon, linked to the club’s underwhelming on-field performance that ultimately cost Scott his job. Hawthorn had been openly targeting Merrett in a bid to bolster their list and strengthen their premiership push last season, a push that never came to fruition.
Speaking to reporters Wednesday, Mitchell declined to dive into deep discussion of Essendon’s internal dynamics, noting the timing of Scott’s departure made the situation sensitive. Still, the Hawks coach admitted he found Scott’s public admission intriguing.
“It was an interesting comment when you hear a coach say he wanted a different outcome than what the football club ultimately went with,” Mitchell said. “It’s not completely unexpected, I suppose, but hearing it laid out publicly like that was interesting. We obviously had a fair bit of interest in Zach at that period of time, and that didn’t come to fruition, which we felt was out of our control. We’ll soldier on with this year, focus on giving ourselves the best possible chance to compete, and look for opportunities to improve our list down the line. The dynamic between how coaches and list management departments work together — it was just interesting, same as everyone else, I thought it made for good TV.”
Beyond the Merrett trade talk, Mitchell also provided injury updates for his squad, ahead of Hawthorn’s crucial Thursday night clash against St Kilda. The coach remained tight-lipped on the selection status of fan favorites Will Day and Jack Gunston, but opened up on the frustrating injury run of key defender Jack Scrimshaw, who was a critical contributor to Hawthorn’s finals run last season.
Scrimshaw has been hampered by persistent minor injuries and a dip in form in recent weeks, before suffering a fresh knock to his opposite knee at training. Mitchell said the utility has been left frustrated by the string of setbacks, but remains optimistic that Scrimshaw will return to senior selection in the very near future.
“He was managing a little bit of knee soreness for a couple of weeks and then ended up falling out of the side,” Mitchell explained. “Then his other knee got a jarring hit at training, so he wasn’t available for AFL selection this week with our match on Thursday. If he gets through the next few days without any issues, he’ll get some game minutes in with Box Hill on Saturday, and should be available for senior selection after that. It’s been a really frustrating block for Jack because he’s such an important player for us, he just slipped out of a bit of form because he was carrying a few niggles, and now he can’t get out on the park. But if he comes through these next few days problem-free, he should have gotten past the worst of it and be back to full fitness soon.”