Clarko trade table hint

HAWTHORN coach Alastair Clarkson is considering going back to the trade table as he plots a return to the summit.

While Grant Birchall is edging closer to a return, Clarkson urged people to reserve their judgment on a Chad Wingard trade, saying the Hawks were being “ultra-cautious” before bringing him back in the squad.

Hawthorn, currently 12th and eight points off the top eight, faces Collingwood at the MCG to night, but Clarkson said the club was playing the long game.

“We’ll do whatever we think will be best for our club. Things come up that’s like a bear jumping on your back. We didn’t anticipate in the last two years that Grant Birchall would play no footy and Cyril Rioli was going to retire at 28,’’ Clarkson said.

“We had no inkling this time last year that we’d be in the market for a Chad Wingard because we didn’t really need him while Cyril was at the club. [You ask] have we got someone like Cyril right now, someone emerging, someone in the draft. There’s not, so we go to the trade table.

“That’s the area of Graham Wright and Mark McKenzie, but we’re all on the same page. We’ll do what’s best for the club — sometimes that’s draft, sometimes that trade.

“We’ve got some hits and misses in that space, like all clubs. We’ll continue to look at our list and our playing group.

“We’ve got eight games to go, where that takes us in terms of finals — it’s not about the short-term goal for us, it’s about the big picture and the long game in terms of when we can next seriously compete for silverware.”

Clarkson said it was foolish to be making judgments on the Ryan Burton-Wingard trade.

“People say the BurtonWingard thing wasn’t good for Hawthorn. It’s five minutes old. Come back to us in 2027 and let us know how it’s gone,’’ he said.