Lloyd Meek is “stoked” to be a Hawthorn player.
The 24-year-old secured a move to Waverley during the trade period after requesting a trade out of Fremantle once Luke Jackson arrived at the club.
While Meek was eventually sent to the Hawks for Jaeger O’Meara and a pick swap, he was made to wait until the final day of the period for his deal to go through.
As Meek still had a year to run on his Fremantle contract, he was nervous that he’d be forced to stay in Perth as a depth player in 2023 which is why he was so thrilled to finally see the deal go through.
“I’m so stoked,” Meek said on SEN WA Breakfast.
“Fair to say I got the full trade experience, but I’m just stoked with the result.
“There was obviously a fair bit of back and forth, that’s what a trade is, football clubs are all competitive and want the best result.
“I was in the US at the time, it was a bit of a weird circumstance I suppose, but I’m so wrapped to be a Hawk.
“I can’t wait to get in and meet everyone, I had my first day a week ago now but to get in properly and build those relationships is something I’m keen to explore.”
While Meek played just 15 games for the Dockers, that lack of opportunity wasn’t due to performance but because of Sean Darcy’s foothold on the club’s number-one ruck role.
As a result, Meek feels he can come in and be Hawthorn’s top man if that’s what’s best for the team.
“Yeah absolutely,” Meek said in response to whether he feels he can be the Hawks’ number one ruck.
“I’ll get to work with Ned Reeves and Max Lynch to see what the best mix for the team is, but I know I’ll be doing everything I can to try and make that happen.
“The last couple of years I’ve obviously been on the fringe a bit, which has been frustrating at times.
“But there’s always more stuff to work on and now I feel like I can come in and have an impact at AFL level.
“I might not be tearing the house down at the start, but everyone needs experience and I’ve played 15 games, so hopefully with a few more games under my belt it’ll help me get there.”
Meek will hope to step into the role left by retiring captain Ben McEvoy who spent much of the last nine years as the club’s main ruckman.