Hawthorn’s heartbreak laid bare before ‘angry’ coach Sam Mitchell leads team huddle

Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell has rallied his players after falling short of the AFL grand final following a gut-wrenching final minute against Brisbane on Saturday night.

The Hawks stormed back from five goals down and were on the brink of victory when Jarman Impey was pinged for holding the ball, allowing Hugh McCluggage to kick the goal that sent the Lions into the decider .

It was the most dramatic decision to settle arguably the greatest game ever — but it was also correct, only adding to the brutal nature of defeat for Hawthorn.

Hawthorn players were predictably devastated when they filed into the rooms and sat down for Mitchell’s post-game address.

But the coach didn’t simply send his players on their way, instead calling them — and support staff — in for a huddle.

“What about this shot in the Hawks rooms?” Nick Riewoldt said on Channel 7 while watching from the raucous Brisbane rooms.

“Talk about a contrast between what we’re seeing behind us here in the rooms and what is happening here.

“Bringing the group together, Sam Mitchell and the leaders. They’re hard to get to (preliminary finals) and they’re a heartbreaker when you lose.”

Mitchell paused for some time at the beginning of his press conference before revealing part of his message to the players.

“That if you want to strive for great things you will open yourself for all sorts of emotions — the greatest of joy, and the deepest of pain,” he said.

Asked if he had spoken to Impey, Mitchell said he had spoken to all the players as he moved to take the pressure of his veteran.

“I’m sure your narrative as the media world will be around that last final decision, but the game goes for a long time,” he said.

Mitchell spoke on his emotions after the game when asked about Hawthorn fans’ bottle-throwing tirade towards the umpires after the loss.

“The emotion of sport is why we love it so much. All sports, but ours in particular, the beauty of the game is the emotion it makes you feel. And how it expresses itself is really hard,” he said.