The close-knit family from the small, footy-mad Riverina town of Finley have produced two generations of Geelong superstars, with John playing 182 often spectacular games in blue and white hoops and his son Tom now following his lead.

The fact that Finley’s local Murray league club also wears Geelong colours means pretty much the whole town will be cheering on the Cats as they attempt to spoil St Kilda’s premiership fairytale at the MCG tomorrow.

John, now president of the Murray league, was nicknamed “jumping” Jack Hawkins due to his dazzling aerial prowess.

A hard-running defender, he enjoyed significant fanfare in his playing days but never tasted ultimate success in his decade-long career.

But his son, having missed out on the 2007 and 2008 grand finals, is now only hours away from becoming a premiership player.

The “Tomahawk” as he is known, was chosen by Geelong as a father-son pick in the 2006 draft and after battling inconsistency and injury, has consolidated his place in the powerful Cats line-up this season.

The 197cm, 100kg power forward has played 21 games (42 overall) and booted 30 goals (57 overall) this year as the Cats surged to a third straight grand final.

Not surprisingly, the Hawkins clan will be there.

They travelled to Melbourne on Wednesday and John believes his strapping son will be able to handle the pressure of the occasion.

“Whenever the Cats are involved in a grand final it gets me excited, but for Tom, who has barracked for the Cats for as long as he possibly could have, for him to now go and play in a grand final is fantastic for him,” John said earlier this week.

“I spoke to him on Sunday morning and he was very relaxed ... no doubt by the end of the week he’ll feel a bit tense but there won’t be anyone playing that won’t be tense. He should be fine.”

John said it became immediately apparent in Tom’s early days that he had the ability to follow in his dad’s footsteps.

“He was always keen on his footy, he had reasonably good ball skills from a young age, (he) kicked the ball well and caught it well,” he said.

“I always thought he had a chance of playing professional footy, especially considering his size.

“The question mark was whether he could handle the pressure — it’s always fine to have all the skills and attributes, but if you haven’t got the mental capacity to cope with being an AFL footballer, that’s the difference.”

Another huge difference between bush footy and the AFL is the intense scrutiny players are put under, something Tom is familiar with.

With his powerful build and poster-boy good looks, Hawkins was hailed as the “next big thing” when the Cats chose him in the 2006 draft.

He showed glimpses of his ability during his debut year of 2007 but his form wavered over the next 12 months, his progress hampered by a serious foot injury in mid-2008.

Soon, Geelong’s perennially impatient fans were asking questions, and it didn’t take too long for the media to follow suit, with sections questioning among other things his workrate, kicking action and even his future in the game.

John believes the criticism was unwarranted, but is proud of the way his son handled it.

“He has (grown as a player this year) — he’s worked very hard to get where he is,” he said.

“He’s copped plenty of criticism ... most of the time he was good about it, but there was a period there about eight weeks ago when he was really starting to feel like he was under pressure from the press.

“He actually went to see the coaches and they reassured him that he was doing what they wanted, and progressing as they wanted, and that they were going to be patient.

“He didn’t go there for that reassurance, he just wanted to talk to them about how he could improve but (Cats coach) Mark Thompson was really good.

“He’s matured a bit now and he is really enjoying his time there.”

As much as John beams when asked about Tom’s success, one thing the family is genuinely proud of is his lack of a trait that tarnishes many famous sporting figures — arrogance.

“He’s generally been a quiet achiever, there’s never any real fanfare about what he has done,” John said.

“With his footy, whether he was playing in the Finley fourths, or Finley thirds, or with his school side, he was obviously a handy player but he never put himself aside from anyone else,.”

Tom recently turned 21, and John is constantly amazed at how professional young footballers are.

“You think back to when you’re 21, you’re all over the shop,” John laughs.

“I often think about how all their contemporaries are turning 21 and thinking what they’re doing with their spare time is completely different to a Tom Hawkins or Joel Selwood.

“Twenty-one-year-olds are no different now than what they have been in the past ... they’re pretty care-free ... but there’s so much more scrutiny and publicity (for AFL footballers).”

But with that increased scrutiny comes increased opportunities, and not many people just out of their teens get to run out on the MCG on the biggest day of the year, a fact not lost on John.

“It’ll be a pretty amazing day ... we just hope Tom plays well and the Cats get up.”