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Sam Mitchell addresses his players during the Round 16 VFL match between Collingwood and Box Hill Hawks at the Holden Centre.Credit:AFL Photos

It should not be lost on Jeff Kennett,either,since the Victorian Liberal Party has hardly thrived since the electorate opted - eventually - to handover from domineering Jeff to the more conciliatory Steve Bracks in 1999.

For the history-minded at Hawthorn,there is a more successful example of a handover,that of the revered John Kennedy to David Parkin in 1977. The critical difference is that Kennedy - a formative influence on Clarkson at North Melbourne - was ready to pass the torch to Parkin (who,as fate would have it,is a mentor to Mitchell).

The task facing the Hawks,thus,is formidable. Ideally,Mitchell would have at least another 12 months as an apprentice. He has been a full-time coach for only four seasons,and as Parkin is wont to say,for the first five years you’re only practising on the players.

Had the Hawks been able to stick to the original script,Mitchell would be better prepared and,no less importantly,he would inherit a playing list in better shape,with the Hawks having had another two drafts in which to replenish.

But the plan became unworkable,the senior players expressed reservations about the transition period and Clarkson was forced out,with the Hawks paying him about $900,000 over two years,unless he finds another coaching gig next year.

The major pluses for Mitchell are that he is taking over a team that’s near the bottom,rather than the Nathan Buckley scenario of a team that’s at,or near,the summit.

Buckley would later acknowledge that he didn’t “have the locker room” - the support of the influential players - when he took over a seasoned and talented team (which went close to back-to-back flags) from Mick Malthouse a decade ago.

So,Mitchell will need the locker room on-side. The demographics of Hawthorn’s list are more favourable to him,however,in comparison to Buckley. The youngsters who’ve played under Mitchell at Box Hill are said to be enthusiastic about him,and if some senior players harbour doubts,there are fewer of them at Hawthorn and some will exit in the next two years.

Buckley had the unpleasant task of removing premiership players and paid a hefty price for his vexed relationship with the hedonists of the rat pack.

Clarkson’s earlier exit means Mitchell has a four-year deal - a rarity for first-time coaches. One parallel with Buckley is that the club - the board and chief executive Justin Reeves,in particular - will be desperate for their favourite son to succeed,in part to justify the unedifying mess,acknowledged by Kennett on Friday,that comes with removing a successful coach who has re-shaped the club.

Mitchell and Clarkson had butted heads already in their conversations,and there was,according to club sources,an apparent gap between their favoured game plans (Mitchell favouring a more offensive style than Clarkson). The Hawks also faced difficulties around the appointment and retention of assistant coaches and support staff.

In the first two years,Mitchell will have solid backing from the fans,many of whom were happy to see a change of coach but wanted Clarkson to exit in a less shambolic manner. In those first couple of years,he’ll be blessed to be judged according to the Clarkson Hawks of 2019-21,rather than the three-peat side in which he was so instrumental.

Mick Malthouse and Nathan Buckley in 2011,before Buckley took the reins from his mentor.Credit:Paul Rovere

By 2024,however,the expectations will rise significantly. Mitchell’s third season,indeed,will be crucial. Hawthorn,a club that doesn’t know premiership droughts,will be four years into a full-scale rebuild (if they don’t jump up earlier).

Kennett,himself,is due to give up the presidency at the end of 2023 - having used the pandemic to justity another term - and Mitchell can only hope that the next president is as invested in him as Andrew Newbold,president for the three-peat,was in Clarkson.

For all the messiness,as “The Handover” turned into something closer to Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. Mitchell has had enough time to grow into the job.

Mitchell predicted on Friday that one day there would be a statue of Clarkson at the club (presumably in the paddocks at Dingley). As the Hawks have demolished their coaching monument,he can only hope that his recruiting staff find a raft of players comparable to he and Luke Hodge over the next few years.

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