Late Hawk hero’s son to debut, stirring high hopes and feelings

2 weeks ago 6

Calsher Dear, the teenage lad of precocious Hawthorn premiership subordinate and Norm Smith medallist Paul Dear, volition marque his debut for the Hawks connected Sunday successful a accelerated ascension since the cardinal guardant was drafted past November.

Dear, conscionable 18, has improved rapidly since helium was drafted arsenic a father-son with the Hawks’ last pick, No.56, successful past year’s nationalist draft, to the constituent that manager Sam Mitchell handed him his archetypal elder crippled this Sunday, good up of pre-season expectation, against the Bulldogs.

Maya, Cherie, Calsher, Harry, Nate and Paul.

Dear’s archetypal crippled volition beryllium a poignant lawsuit for Hawthorn fans, his household and ex-teammates of his father, who died from pancreatic crab successful July 2022.

One of Paul’s teammates, Andy Collins, admits that helium felt immoderate emotion erstwhile helium was told that Calsher, whom Collins has been coaching successful his relation arsenic Hawthorn’s caput of development, would beryllium playing his archetypal elder crippled this weekend. “When we were told contiguous helium would play I became rather affectional astir it,” said Collins.

Collins played successful the 1991 expansive last alongside Paul, whom Collins counted among his closest friends successful their post-Hawthorn lives, Collins having persuaded Paul to play for Sandringham erstwhile the erstwhile was coaching the VFL squad successful the 1990s.

Collins, thus, is well-placed to comparison the begetter and son, whose uncle Greg Dear rucked successful Hawthorn’s 1986, 1988 and 1989 flags.

Hawthorn’s Paul Dear balances the shot connected his fingertips successful the 1991 expansive final.

Calsher, who mixed footy with hoops successful his inferior days, owns what Collins called “an bonzer leap” and astatine 196 centimetres, is some taller and leaner than his heavier-set but skilful dad, who often played – and with astonishing efficacy – arsenic an undersized roaming ruckman, astatine lone 188 cm.

Calsher is right-footed, whereas his begetter had a near hoof and, arsenic Collins recalled, could screen agelong distances accurately. Collins called Calsher’s kicking “an emerging talent” that needed work.

“He’s a 196 centimetres versatile benignant of forward. He has a terrific lead. He has an bonzer leap. He’s beauteous bully connected crushed shot tackling,” Collins said of Dear.

“But he’s got a stronger hoops inheritance than helium had a shot inheritance successful his juniors, though helium played footy passim his juniors, I deliberation hoops was his passion.”

From Beaumaris juniors – the aforesaid nine that produced his mentor and seasoned teammate Jack Gunston – Dear landed astatine Sandringham Dragons under-18s and successful Hawthorn’s father-son program. “Then he’s truly improved wrong that past 12 months.”

Dear had not been successful enactment to play this soon successful his career, but circumstances were specified that Sam Mitchell has promoted him to regenerate the team’s absent first-choice cardinal forwards Mitch Lewis and Mabior Chol (suspended). Dear’s performances astatine Box Hill had quickened brownish and golden pulses, excessively – he’s booted 9.10 from 5 games, managing 2.4 and 4.2 successful the past 2 games.

“We could flick magnets and we could instrumentality backs to forwards,” said Collins of the missing cardinal forwards. “This is the existent recognition and courageousness of Sam [Mitchell]. He understands the value of giving our younker the accidental to play AFL footy and we cognize agelong word we’re going to beryllium amended for it.

“He could displacement magnets, you know, you could enactment a [James] Sicily forward, you could enactment adjacent a Frost forward.

Hawthorn’s draftees Nick Watson, Calsher Dear, Will McCabe and Bodie Ryan.

“And Calsher has had immoderate truly bully moments astatine VFL level, but he’s acold from a finished merchandise astatine the moment. But hopefully – and we’ve seen it earlier – helium tin travel connected the footy tract and get progressive crippled and that would beryllium a fantastic acquisition for him.”

“We’ve utilized Calsher successful the ruck occasionally astatine VFL level. He’s a precise courageous young man, you cognize rather beardown mentally, rather resilient and evidently life’s travel has travelled him to this place. He’s a competitor.

“Even past week, helium got a truly atrocious sound [to his leg] aboriginal successful the crippled and helium was a small spot upset by it and successful the 2nd half, helium truly shook it off, erstwhile a batch of players whitethorn person been looking to travel disconnected the field.”

At archetypal hobbled, Calsher showed his mettle. “In the 2nd half, helium was bonzer – and erstwhile I accidental extraordinary, conscionable jumped truly hard astatine the footy, halved a batch of contests,” said Collins.

“He’s precise antithetic to his dad, some successful mobility, physique, precise antithetic to his uncle [Greg]. Mum must’ve had immoderate powerfulness due to the fact that this young boy’s got a spot of leap.”

Paul stood 188 cm and didn’t leap high, contempt his unorthodox proficiency successful the ruck. He was a footballer, though. “It wasn’t a large spot of his [jumping], it was much astir his powerfulness and his weight. Paul was precise highly skilled peculiarly connected his near broadside and was a existent force,” Collins said.

Calsher’s advancement is up of projections.

“This is simply a subordinate that we person large hopes [for] now. When we saw him past twelvemonth travel into the academy, we saw a kid that could leap astatine the ball. But he’s travel connected a small spot quicker than immoderate of america thought. It’s a existent recognition to Arryn Siposs [forwards improvement coach], Zane Littlejohn, the Box Hill coach, they’ve worked truly hard with him, peculiarly Arryn Siposs.”

Calsher’s parent Cherie and his precocious begetter founded a campaign, Dare to Hope, pursuing Paul’s diagnosis of signifier 4 pancreatic crab successful September 2020. Dare to Hope was astir uncovering anticipation for families and those diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. This year’s Easter Monday crippled betwixt Hawthorn and Geelong was designated by the Hawks arsenic the Dare to Hope crippled - and portion Calsher was not playing successful that game, helium was, according to Collins, profoundly invested successful what that time commemorated.

Gunston has invested sizeable clip successful Calsher, too. Fittingly, Gunston was the archetypal to archer Dear that helium would beryllium playing this Sunday, the brace sharing not lone guardant craft, but the trauma of having mislaid their fathers to crab successful 2022.