Temora's Luke Breust excited about AFL season with new-look Hawthorn ahead of Saturday night kick off against Essendon

But even after 220 games - including three premierships - this farming footballer from Temora heads into a new season brimming with enthusiasm.

Despite a changing of the guard in the off-season and expectations of a rebuilding year for the Hawks, Breust is buoyed by what he's seen so far and can't wait for Saturday night against Essendon.

"I'm pretty excited about this season," Breust told The Daily Advertiser.

"It was obviously an interesting season last year, coming off what was a promising start then it all went downhill for us in the hub. But the guys have attacked pre-season really well."

The Hawks have lost plenty of experience but Breust recently re-signed with the club until the end of 2023.

The club declared his experience and knowledge will be essential for young teammates but the 30-year-old is already getting plenty in return.

"We've got some youth and energy come in which has been unreal from my point of view because it's pretty easy to get motivated on the track when you see these guys buzzing around and creating the energy and spark," he said.

"I've have had a great pre-season and got my body in a good spot where I feel like I can perform really well.

"Off-field, it's probably a bit of an emphasis in what I can do for these young guys and what I can do to help fast-track them to perform consistently."

Now 30, Breust knows how time can fly as a professional sportsman.

But he also understands how daunting it can be to adjust to that life, and to learn what it takes to create consistency in your game.

"It's definitely a challenge. The biggest thing for me when I moved here was just the off-field stuff, dealing with traffic and trams and little things like that that you don't even think about," he said.

"Those things can create anxiety and stress in your life and it's amazing how much of an impact that can have do run out on the field or at training. I had a great host family and guys around me... you need that support to learn what it takes to be an AFL footballer and until you get that, it can be hard."

Breust kicked three goals in their scratch match win over the Western Bulldogs and said there's promise in their forward set-up, even if Jack Gunston's set to miss the first few weeks.

"It was nice to get on the end of a few, I love kicking goals (he's one of only nine Hawthorn players to kick more than 400 in their carre)," he said.

"But the most pleasing thing was that guys like Mitchy Lewis seemed to have his swagger back and was starting to catch the ball well for a key forward... Tim O'Brien kicked a few as well and we've got a couple of exciting young guys like Tyler Brockman and Dylan Moore coming through."

Breust missed the Community Series victory against North Melbourne due to a family wedding but said there was more to like there (including Jacob Koschitze's six goals) without getting carried away.

"To produce two pretty handy wins in our pre-season... it's still just good confirmation that our system's hopefully going to work," he said.

"But it's going to be these first four or six weeks where we'll really know where we stand and where we're at within the competition."

Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson has also spoken of his side's need for depth in the midfield.

"That's an important part of my role," Breust said.

"A small forward, it can be a bit of a graveyard sometimes, depending what's going on in the game so having that flexibility to go up the ground and try to make an impact is huge for my game and I'll be trying to do that as much as possible."

Breust will go in relaxed and refreshed after a good off-season away from football. He got married in February (delayed after originally being planned for October), and enjoyed a good couple of months at home on the farm in the lead-up to Christmas.

"It was awesome, it's probably the most time I've ever had back there - did all the shearing, all the hay cutting, the harvest. It was flat out. It was good for me. I just love going back there and not thinking about things, just working and spending time with my mum and dad and brother and sister."

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