Tomorrow night, Sam Mitchell will take his young Hawk cohort to an elimination final for the first time as coach. And for many in the team, this is not only the first time they’ll experience finals football, but also footy under Friday night lights in front of a sell-out crowd.
The winner of this game will face the loser of tonight’s game between Port Adelaide and Geelong at Adelaide Oval.
Both teams come into this game following blistering form in the latter half of the home and away season and fresh from the pre-finals bye. The sixth placed Bulldogs are currently listed as the favourites by punters as they boast a tall forward line and AA captain Marcus Bontempelli firing in the midfield, as well as dominating the stat sheet in all but the hit-outs and disposal efficiency.
Keeping that in mind, they weren’t so lucky in their last encounter with the Hawks. The last time these two met was in round eight at Marvel Stadium, Bulldogs turf, back in May. Despite the Dogs dominance in the stoppage game, Hawthorn outmanoeuvred their tall opponents, outscoring them via intercept possessions, winning the day by seven points.
The Dogs led for the first quarter kicking 5.1 to Hawthorn’s 4.2, but the Hawks wrangled the lead in the second and maintained it for the majority of the remainder of the game. It was also the debut match for young gun, Calsher Dear, who kicked the first two majors of his career, and the game which saw captain James Sicily swing forward for the first time this season, after dislocating his shoulder, where he kicked the match winning goal.
The Six Year Gap
Hawthorn has not played in the finals since 2018. That had been a qualifying final against Richmond.
Much has changed since then. It was the last time Alastair Clarkson took the Hawks to finals before his departure and Sam Mitchell’s instalment as head coach. Eight players remain from that line up: James Sicily, Jack Gunston, Blake Hardwick, Harry Morrison, Jarman Impey, James Worpel, Luke Bruest, and Connor Nash.
This leaves the remaining fourteen players in the Hawks’ side green when it comes to finals experience.
Is this history repeating?
The Hawks have a peculiar shared history with the Bulldogs. Last time Hawks met the Dogs in a final, Sam Mitchell was still playing in the number five for Hawthorn. That was 2016, where the Dogs famously broke their 52-year grand final drought. Three players remain from that Grand Final line up: Jason Johannisen, Tom Liberatore, and Marcus Bontempelli.
This history goes back further. In fact, eight years prior, the Hawks and Dogs met in the finals, with the Hawks going on to become the 2008 premiers and similar events occurred in 1961 (Hawks defeated the Bulldogs in the Grand Final) and 1985 (Hawks bested the Dogs and go on to lose the flag to the Bombers). Such tantalising coincidences are enough to raise hopes ever so slightly.
The Line Up
The Hawks’ side will go another week without gun midfielder Will Day, who was ruled out of selection on Saturday due to his ongoing collarbone injury. Cam Mackenzie will be joining Day on the sidelines this week, after unfortunately straining his hamstring during training on Wednesday.
This leaves selectors with an interesting conundrum as to who should take their place with not only Finn Maginness putting his hand up, but also Changkouth Jiath and Josh Ward. Mitchell suggested there may be as many as three changes to the line-up on Friday which adds further intrigue to the selection question.
32 players took to the track on Wednesday, suggesting the club were exploring all their options carefully before heading to the team selection committee.
A Wet Weather Final?
Despite an unseasonably warm forecast for Friday, the BOM has forecasted a very high chance of showers, most likely in the late afternoon and evening.
Hawks have fared better in the wet this season than previously, partially in thanks to their “mosquito fleet” including small forwards Jack Ginnivan and Nick Watson. With the Dogs being the taller side, some rain might just work in Hawthorn’s favour. Coach Mitchell has definitely kept wet weather footy in mind, both at training and at the selection table according to his press conference on Wednesday.
Whatever happens on Friday, it is certainly a very exciting time for the club. For such a young side with a third year coach to go from 0-5 to finals footy is an achievement in itself. So whether they go on further into September or their season ends here, they have certainly proven that they are a side with a bright future.
