WHAT'S WRONG WITH HAWTHORN AND WHAT'S TO LIKE?
NEGATIVES
* The loss of key personnel - stars Sam Mitchell and Jordan Lewis were traded, while long-time football director Chris Fagan left to coach Brisbane
* New leaders everywhere - Apart from Clarkson, nearly every key leadership role at the club has changed since last year. Richard Garvey is in his first full year as president, the Hawks have not announced a permanent replacement for chief executive Stuart Fox, Jarryd Roughead is the new captain and Jason Burt has taken over from Fagan as their football department boss
* Too many stars are down - Josh Gibson, Shaun Burgoyne, Luke Breust, Liam Shiels and Cyril Rioli. All multiple Hawthorn premiership players. All super-reliable. And all off to sub-par starts. In the case of Gibson, speculation is now strong that he will go at the end of the season
* Their skills are well down - the knock on Hawthorn in the last couple of years was that they kept losing contested possessions. But their skills, especially field kicking, were so good that it wasn't really a factor. Now everything looks off the boil. No team has scored less or had more points kicked against it so far this season
* Their draft and trade prospects look bleak - Hawthorn "sold the farm" to secure key recruits Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O'Meara, raising eyebrows in the industry with the draft picks they traded away in the process. And what trade currency will the Hawks have at the end of this season?
POSITIVES
* Mitchell and O'Meara are gun recruits - They are both 23 and have big futures. O'Meara's knee issues remain a worry, but they are undoubtedly top-tier midfielders
* They will play the kids, in a hurry - The likes of Ryan Burton, James Sicily, Kade Stewart and Jonathan O'Rourke have shown glimpses. Now Hawks fans will see whether they are generation next
* Clarkson - Only 12 men in AFL history have coached four or more premierships. He has some idea of what he's doing
* Roughead and Luke Hodge - Like Clarkson, they have peerless AFL reputations. The Hawks didn't need Hodge's club suspension for round one, but he has been solid since
* It's only round four. Given the mass changes, the Hawks were probably always going to struggle early. The last fortnight has been rubbish, but they can rally. While West Coast and Sam Mitchell this week will be a struggle, St Kilda in Launceston is very gettable the week after. Then come Melbourne (MCG), Brisbane and Fagan (Launceston) and Collingwood (MCG). It's not the worst month ahead.
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