Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell says captain James Sicily “needs to be better” after making disparaging comments about Tasmania, which he was forced to apologise for.
Responding to a question about the potential list-build issues for a new Tasmanian team during a radio interview on Wednesday, Sicily said he “couldn’t imagine myself living there.”
The first-year captain apologised for the comments calling them “flippant” after they created a social media storm with rebuttals from both former Australian Test captain Tim Paine and Matthew Wade, both proud Tasmanians.
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The comments were more significant given the Tasmanian government has been a long time sponsor of Hawthorn, which plays games annually on the Apple Isle.
Earlier this year the partnership was extended with a two-year deal worth $13.5 million and the federal government is on the verge of pledging $240 million to build a new stadium for Tasmania’s own AFL team.
On Thursday morning Mitchell said he had spoken to his skipper and conceded Sicily needed to be more careful with what he said.
“I had a good chat with him, he’s got to learn from this,” Mitchell said.
“He’s frustrated it’s not what he meant, it’s not a reflection of his thinking, but as the captain of the club he needs to be better.”
Mitchell was at pains to say he and the players loved their connection with Tasmania.
“We love our time in Tassie,” he said.
“More than half of the players actually stayed in Tassie, including James, after the game and spent some extra time there.”
Mitchell confirmed gun forward Mitch Lewis needed only to complete training to return from a knee injury for Saturday’s clash with the Western Bulldogs.
