“We bring the joy out of him”: Day lauds Mitchell as Hawks strive to balance their celebrations

Hawthorn’s Will Day has emphasised the importance of relationships, celebrating wins and balancing humble behaviour after Saturday's 66-point victory over reigning premiers Collingwood.

As the Hawks continue their ascent up the ladder having won seven of their past eight games, Day acknowledges the positive influence Sam Mitchell has had on the players and their ability to strive both on and off the field.

Four-time premiership player Mitchell drove standards as a player and is doing similar things as the club's head coach.

“I heard when he was a player, he was really hard on everyone and really drove everyone to be better,” Day mentioned on SEN Breakfast.

“I think as he came into coaching he knew that relationships were a really important thing to start off with. He put an enormous amount of work into that, and with us young boys at the time he would spend countless hours and not even about footy, but just sitting and having chats.

“I think that's gone a long way. Now when we are having a lot of fun, he can also pull us in. We have the relationships with him now that he can be really stern with us and we know it's for the right reasons.

“Some weeks he finds it hard to express that joy because he feels like he doesn’t want to get too ahead himself.

“But we bring the joy out of him. On the weekend he said the last 10 minutes was just about the most fun he’s had in any football game.

“Most players are having fun, but the fact that him, and not only him but the broader coaching group and staff, we just want to have a really fun environment, which is awesome.”

Being an emerging leader around the club for young guns like Jack Ginnivan and Nick Watson, as well as the reigning best and fairest, 23-year-old Day is proud of the Hawks' ability to balance a well-earned celebration with respect for opposing players and fans.

He referenced Ginnivan and his celebrations against his former club the Magpies on Saturday as a case in point.

“I'm probably on the conservative side of it and you won't really see me pulling out too many celebrations here and there, but I think the perfect example is 'Ginny' on the weekend,” Day added.

“He was razzing up the crowd and having fun with celebrations, but I thought his post-match interview where he was talking about the Collingwood boys and the respect he has for them, I feel like that showed some great balance.

“We have fun and we express ourselves, but at the right times, we also are really respectful for the opposition as well.”

The Hawks, who now sit 11th and just two points outside the eight, will be feeling pumped and ready to continue their strong recent form in Adelaide this weekend.

They meet the 14th-placed Crows at Adelaide Oval on Sunday with the first bounce set for 4:10pm (AEST).