ArticleSeveral decades ago I moved from Wellington to Melbourne, thereby – in the immortal words of New Zealand prime minister “Piggy” Muldoon – increasing the IQ of both nations. I rented a house in Hawthorn and became, by geographical association, a supporter of the Hawthorn Football Club.
I swiftly fell in love with Aussie football, and Hawthorn has amply repaid my affection by being the most successful club since.
It has produced great teams and wonderful players (as have other clubs). But the 2024 team – which a fortnight ago won its first final since 2015, and was eliminated last week by a bare three points after inspirational captain James Sicily hit the post with a long shot in the last minute – may be the most exciting yet.
Age chief football writer Jake Niall found the exact word: exuberance. This young team plays with freedom and joy, revelling innocently in the beauty of what they are doing. And the young players’ preoccupation with celebrations is a manifestation of that innocence.
This amounts to nothing less than a restoration of the purity of sport. Of course, they want to win, but there’s also a sense of the old amateur ideal that it’s the game that counts. I admit I am partisan, but friends who follow other clubs have shared their delight in watching the Hawks play this year.
I may be pushing the metaphor, but it could be argued that after a decade in the wilderness the Hawks have achieved a sort of football redemption.
Redemption is a common term in sport, surely drawn from its religious use. What both sporting and religious redemption have in common is the steps to get there.
First comes failure, then recognition of the need to change, to look to something better, then action, hope and hard work.
Of course, for the Christian the hard work was done by someone else, Jesus on the cross, but the Bible teaches that for the believer redemption is just the beginning of the hard work of a holy and generous life.
Another aspect of redemption is how quickly it can happen. When the Hawks lost their first five games few thought that anything might be possible but a bottom-four finish. In fact, they finished half the width of the post from a preliminary final. It’s when the night is darkest that hope is most important.
Hawthorn is not guaranteed to progress next year – other teams will work to nullify them, and the shock value of their enterprising play is gone. So believers too may struggle as they move on, two steps forward, one back. But that first step, which the Hawks have taken, is the most vital.
Barney Zwartz is a Senior Fellow of the Centre for Public Christianity. This article first appeared in the Sunday Age.