- The great Geelong will not play in 2025
- He holds the club record, winning three flags
Tom Hawkins still harbours ambitions of playing again this season but the Geelong champion has confirmed he will retire at the end of the 2024 campaign.
Geelong’s games record holder told teammates on Tuesday he would be ending his decorated 18-year career that included three championships and a monster run of 11 consecutive club top-scoring honours.
Hawkins, 36, will continue to push for a comeback bid following the foot injury he sustained in Round 15 against Carlton, and the Cats hope he can return to full training within a fortnight and make his case for selection for the finals.
Geelong football boss Andrew Mackie, who was Hawkins’ teammate for more than a decade, said the star forward was a “generational player”.
“Tom has been an incredible presence both on and off the field at Geelong over the past 18 years, with his ability to consistently play at an elite level, coupled with humility and care for his teammates, hallmarks of his career,” Mackie said.
‘He is a generational player who will be rightly celebrated for his achievements on the pitch, as well as the role he has played in making our club what it is today.
‘We would like to thank Tom, his wife Emma and their children Arabella, Primrose and Henry for all they have given to our club.’
Earlier this season, Hawkins surpassed close friend and former teammate Joel Selwood to break Geelong’s all-time games record, which now stands at 359.
Hawkins won three flags in his glittering career with the Cats, including their 2022 triumph over the Swans (pictured)
The 36-year-old has been a mainstay of the Geelong side since 2007 and holds the record for most appearances for the club (pictured being lifted off the ground in his 350th game).
His 796 goals are the third-most of any Cat, behind Gary Ablett Sr. and Doug Wade.
The announcement came just minutes after Richmond champion Dustin Martin announced he had played his final football game.
Hawkins played for Geelong in his third season in 2009, scoring a controversial goal that appeared to graze the post but was crucial to the Cats’ victory over St Kilda.
Back injuries and a perceived lack of mobility made him a maligned player in his early years, but he emerged as a powerful key forward in the 2011 finals series and snatched the grand final from Collingwood with a superb three-goal performance to seal his second flag.
Following that standout finals series, Hawkins went on to score at least 46 goals in each of the next 12 seasons and win five All-Australian titles, including the honour of All-Australian captaincy in 2022.