Hawthorn skipper Sam Mitchell says his team is taking nothing for granted as it prepares for a tilt at a grand final berth.
Mitchell, who narrowly missed a spot in the 22-man All-Australian team named on Monday night, said the Hawks were 'in a great position' ahead of Saturday night's preliminary final showdown with St Kilda.
Mitchell pointed to inspirational former captain Shane Crawford as to why the Hawks would stop at nothing for a shot at either Geelong or the Western Bulldogs on the last Saturday in September.
"'Crawf''s been in the system for 17 years and he's always one who says I've never been in a position as good as this, so don't think it's going to happen every year," Mitchell said at Waverley Park on Tuesday.
"This is our one opportunity, we might never be back in this position again. We're acutely aware that this is a great opportunity for us when you finish in the top four and have a week off in September to freshen up."
"We're in a great position, we couldn't be any better placed at this stage. It's exciting times. All the boys are really looking forward to the weekend."
Hawthorn gave up a 28-point lead at half-time to lose by five goals against the Saints in Round 16 but Mitchell said that result would be irrelevant come Saturday.
"I think it was reasonably different sides for both of us. They're in much better form now than they were then and we'd like to think we are too," he said.
"We were in front by four or five goals at half-time but probably took our foot off the pedal a little bit and it showed that if we don't come with our 'A' game against a side as good as the Saints we're not good enough to beat them. So we need to make sure we're on our game on the weekend."
Meanwhile, Mitchell - who averaged 28.2 disposals per game to rank fourth in the league this season - said missing out on All-Australian selection for the second consecutive year was a bittersweet experience but added that the selection of just two of his team-mates in Luke Hodge and Lance Franklin showed just how even the Hawks were across the board.
"In a sense it's almost a pat on the back that we can go 17-5 for the season ... and done it without what most people would call All-Australian years from players," Mitchell said.
"If we have a few of our guys play even better and become all-Australians, then that could make us even better as a club."