The old-fashioned spray that once littered the broadcast has been diminished by the ability coaches have to put the past behind them. Quickly.

But every now and then, we are witness to the anger and frustration a mentor has with his players.

And in Round 7 against Sydney, Hawthorn defender Jack Scrimshaw felt every bit of Sam Mitchell's outrage at the quarter-time break.

At the time, Hawthorn were famously 1-5 and finals looked farfetched and the subsequent Swans loss that day would sit in isolation for nearly the remainder of the season.

Nearly 20 weeks on from that fateful moment, Scrimshaw details the turning point of the Hawks' 2024 campaign that has taken AFL fans on a journey for one of the competition's youngest sides.

Through their brash and arrogant ways - similar to the Mitchell's Hawks of a decade ago - the brown and gold has stormed into premiership calculations, with a semi-final match poised for Friday.

 2024-09-13T09:40:00Z 
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"Obviously, it was a decent spray that I copped," Scrimshaw said.

"One that I really took in my stride. A few years ago I'd probably dwell on that moment. I was able to move on pretty quick and that is based around my relationship with Sam.

"I think last year, when I was in and out of the side, we were catching up regularly, he was giving me a lot of clips in the background.

"He's really big on standards. We've been trying to push that amongst the playing group, set it straight before Sam does.

"Ultimately we are the ones out there and push the standards on the field. We can't wait for quarter-time or half-time for Sam to come and deliver the message.

"It's about putting more ownership on as players."

Scrimshaw has only missed one match - ironically against Port Adelaide in Round 10 - and has been a significant figure in the backline alongside James Sicily and Sam Frost.

Unfortunately for the latter, a stress-related footy injury has ruled Frost out for the remainder of the year.

"It's a big loss for us," Scrimshaw said.

"We've got to be on our game more so without Frosty'. He's been such an important member of our backline.

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"Jai Serong has been in really good form in the VFL and probably a bit stiff not to get a look in as well as Ethan Phillips. They'll be a couple options."

The Hawks will enter hostile territory on Friday as they make the trip to South Australia as favourites in the semi-final.

The previous meeting between the two clubs ended in heartbreak for Hawthorn, having held a 41-point lead late in the third term.

Scrimshaw and his team will be looking to avenge their second-half fadeout, with Sydney awaiting the winner.