Despite not being the flashiest of victories, the Hawks ultimately rode a dominant final term to a 35-point victory over a plucky Melbourne side.
After a see-sawing three quarters, the Hawks entered the final break with a slender one-point lead, leaving many brown and gold fans biting their fingernails, their minds no doubt cast to Hawthorns recent record against Melbourne.
However, a dominant final term saw the Hawks kick six goals to Melbourne’s one, half of which were booted by dark-horse Coleman contender, Jack Gunston. Sam Mitchell’s men ultimately delivered a 35-point victory, their first win over the Demons since 2018, placing them third on the ladder come round end.
Many talking points arose from the clash, including the use of four-time best-and-fairest Clayton Oliver as a tagger on star midfielder Jai Newcombe, a mere couple of years since Finn Maginness was publicly questioned by Simon Goodwin about his tagging treatment on Oliver.
Off the back of James Worpel’s contested vigour, Changkuoth Jiath’s interceptions and the continuation of Jack Gunston’s offensive renaissance that sees him ranked third in the Coleman Medal and averaging 3.3 goals/game, the Hawks scored 41 points to Melbourne’s seven in the final quarter; a period of the match that truly displayed how destructive the squad is when on song.
Lauren
3 – James Worpel
28 disposals, with 50% of those touches contested, Worpel stood out as the best Hawk’s player on the ground with his ability to win the hard ball. He was able to read Max Gawn’s hitouts across the game, registering 6 clearances. Also ensuring he applied top level pressure to Melbourne’s midfield with a game high 10 tackles. A game that showed why we don’t want to lose a player like him at the end of this year!
2 – James Sicily
Besides the one egregious holding the ball free against, I thought Sicily looked back to his old self against the Dees. Going at just under 90% disposal efficiency from his 24 touches. He was also able to hold on to his marks, unlike the past few takes, taking 5 intercepts and slowing Melbourne’s attack.
1 – Changkouth Jiath
Back to back stellar performances for CJ. He’s using his pace at the right times and looks more settled down back than he has ever before. He was able to heavily influence the game having 9 score involvements and 6 inside 50s from half back.
Ollie
3 – James Worpel
In a perfect example of why Hawthorn are so desperate not to lose his impact, James Worpel’s workmanlike performance on Saturday was clearly the standout from the match. Perfectly blending ball-winning and defensive intensity with 28 disposals and ten tackles, Worpel’s ability to gain first possession and evade opposition tackle attempts with his brute strength and coordination was pivotal in preventing Max Gawn’s ruck dominance to result in ascendancy across the ground.
2 – Changkuoth Jiath
Off the back of a career-best performance against Richmond the week before, ‘CJ’ continued his mini resurgence against Melbourne. In just under 80% game time, Jiath finished with a smooth 25 disposals, nine marks and 507 metres-gained, whilst also offering significant attacking impact with nine score-involvements. After multiple frustrating seasons struggling to cement a consistent spot in the senior squad, Jiath may have found a role that could be his for the next decade.
1 – James Sicily
After heavy scrutiny over his form of recent weeks, the captain reminded fans of his abilities against the Dees. Racking up 24 disposals, ten marks and nine intercept-possessions, the return of his assurity by foot and in the air was a major reason the Hawks walked away with the four points.
Bec
3 – James Worpel
A leader in the midfield, who worked hard to raise the standard in what was a scrappy game, Worpel demonstrated maturity and drive. Lead disposal getter with 28, and tackler with ten, Worpel also notched six clearances (second highest for the match), and seven score involvements.
2 – Changkouth Jiath
Following up last week’s performance with another great game, watching CJ was definitely a highlight from Saturday. 12 intercept possessions, nine score involvements, 507 meters gained, from 25 disposals, it’s exciting to see him take the game on and recover his explosive form.
1 – Josh Weddle
Rewarding Josh for his consistency. Seeing the ball in his hands raises pulses in a good way. 22 disposals, five score involvements, six intercept possessions, and a goal, the stat sheet doesn’t reflect just how omnipresent Weddle seems on the footy field.
Chris
3 – James Worpel
It’s great to see Worps performing at this level, doing the grunt work with half of his game high 28 disposals being contested. The grunt doesn’t end there with a game high 10 tackles! With six clearances and seven score involvements, it’s a really well rounded performance.
2 – Changkuoth Jiath
CJ is rocking DJ and it’s making me feel so nice! His return to form is a sigh of relief but more importantly giving the opposition nightmares! Playing with complete freedom and confidence he’s providing even more flexibility to our already stacked backline.
1 – Massimo D’Ambrisio
Like CJ, Mass has hit a rich vein of form, delivering the performances we became accustomed to last year in the past two weeks. 26 Disposals at 85% disposal efficiency, nearly 600m gained and six score involvement rounded out my top three.
Tim
With Jai Newcombe tagged and trio of Nash, Day and Mackenzie not playing, Hawthorn needed a midfield leader to step up and that man was Worps. 28 touches, 10 tackles, 6 clearances and a whole hearted effort.
Two weeks in a row CJ has been absolutely blistering in the backline. His incredible work rate, confidence with ball in hand and ability to get involved in scoring chains has made him a valuable asset.
1 – Jack Gunston
Final Tally
James Worpel – 15
Changkouth Jiath – 9
James Sicily – 3
Jack Gunston – 1
Josh Weddle – 1
Massimo D’Ambrosio – 1
