Hawthorn veteran Jarman Impey isn't fazed by Hawthorn's midfield stocks taking a supposed hit over the off-season and believes the club is prepared to go one better than their preliminary final exit in 2025.
The Hawks lost former club best-and-fairest winner James Worpel to Geelong via free agency in October, and failed to pry superstar Zach Merrett from the clutches of Essendon, but Impey believes the development of Hawthorn's midfield youngsters will quash the doubts surrounding their list for 2026.
In particular, Impey highlighted to media on Saturday that the return of a fit and firing Will Day changes everything for Hawthorn, as the injury-troubled 24-year-old made an impressive start to pre-season.
"It's going to be very scary getting Will Day 100 per cent fit, so we look forward to that," Impey proclaimed.
"He's a favourite of mine, Will Day. He's looking really fit, he's just really locked in, it seems.
"Hopefully he can have a really consistent pre-season and get super, super fit."
However, the emerging talent doesn't end there.
As highlighted by Ned Reeves, the Hawks have a crop of talent waiting in the wings to stake their claim as a part of Hawthorn's best 23.
READ: How Hawthorn's midfield will cover loss of Worpel, Merrett miss
It includes soon-to-be 22-year-old Cam Mackenzie, who Hawthorn refused to include in a trade package for Zach Merrett, further illustrating the belief the club has in his potential.
Impey provided a similar sentiment.
"Cam Mackenzie is one that pops up into my mind," Impey said.
"[Josh] Ward can have a great year, [Henry] Hustwaite can go to another level as well. That little crew have been training together in the off-season and coming into the club super early as well.
"Those boys look fit, they look hungry, I keep talking about personnel, and they're the ones who I think are ready to take the step and we have big belief in them."
With their strong showings in the early days of pre-season, it has left Impey buoyed about Hawthorn's potential for 2026.
"Winning [the premiership] would be nice but there's so many great teams out there as we see every single year," Impey told reporters.
"We'll look to play in the Finals, and it would be nice to finish top four. If we can stay very fit, we'll be there at the pointy end of the season."
The Hawks begin their 2026 season against GWS in Opening Round at Engie Stadium.
