It was the final deal on Deadline Day, officially lodged seven minutes after the trade period ended but submitted just in time to allow Massimo D’Ambrosio to start his holiday in Airlie Beach.
Hawthorn had anticipated an opportunity months earlier when Essendon delayed extending contracts for its rookies until the end of the season. The Hawks offered D’Ambrosio a two-year deal and a spot on the senior list. By the time the Bombers responded with a one-year offer, which eventually extended to two years, D’Ambrosio had decided to move to Waverley Park.
D’Ambrosio could have joined Hawthorn as a delisted free agent due to a clause where second-year rookies who reject a third-year offer are considered delisted players.
However, it didn’t come to that. Essendon eventually conceded. The trade cost the Hawks pick No.61 (which Essendon didn’t use and Geelong later used to select Oli Wiltshire) and a future fourth-round pick for a player who is now seen as the biggest steal of last year’s trade period.
After playing eight games last year—being a substitute in his final four—totaling 16 games after being selected by Essendon with pick No.3 in the 2022 Mid-Season Rookie Draft, D’Ambrosio has had a remarkable start at Waverley Park, playing 13 of the first 14 games in 2024.
The 21-year-old reaches Hawthorn’s mid-season bye rated by Champion Data as the No.2 wingman in the AFL, trailing only Sydney star Errol Gulden and surpassing Josh Daicos, who won the Copeland Trophy in a premiership season last year and earned his first All-Australian blazer.
