An unimpressive Hawthorn Hawks outfit has defeated the Melbourne Demons by 50 points at the MCG on Saturday evening.
It wasn’t always easy for the Hawks during the match as a strong 40-point second quarter gave them the 17.13 (115) to 9.11 (65) victory over the Dees.
Hawthorn, having defeated the then first-placed Sydney Swans followed by last week’s percentage boosting victory over the Western Bulldogs, were hunting for another scalp to reaffirm their position at the top of the ladder. With a tough run home and a clogged top four, a big win was crucial for the Hawks top-two hopes.
Melbourne, on the other hand, was still trying to avoid the wooden spoon, even after a season of improvement under new coach Paul Roos.
The match was a true David and Goliath for the 2014 season and it was up to the Hawks to prove their worth and not let Melbourne into the game.
After a disjointed opening, it took 10 minutes for the Hawks to kick their first goal and, unsurprisingly, it came from a Jarryd Roughead set shot. After kicking six against the Bulldogs, Roughead had two in as many minutes as he pounced on a stray shot from teammate David Hale to score from close-range.
Hawthorn began strengthening their grip on the game.
At times, it was too easy for Hawthown as Luke Breust failed to take the mark but still shrugged off a toothless Demons’ tackle to kick the Hawks’ third goal.
Melbourne suddenly had the footy in their attacking 50, but it wasn’t pretty. Two failed marks finally resulted in a roving Dean Kent kicking the Demons’ first.
Then, from within their defensive 50, Melbourne started a swift left side counter-attack. The movement consisted of numerous handballs made under pressure before a kick was propelled to an unmarked James Frawley who finished off an excellent team goal and gave the Dees’ their second.
But the Hawks still had control of the game as Isaac Smith cleaned-up Ryan Schoenmakers’ failed mark and Hawthorn had their fourth goal and a 15-point quarter time lead.
Less than a minute into the second quarter, the umpire awarded Melbourne’s Max Gawn a 50m penalty and the Demon cut the Hawks’ lead to nine points.
Moments after a crunching tackle that corked the thigh of Jeremy Howe, Roughead was reported for tripping Dom Tyson. Even though the trip could appear unintentional to some, Roughead may find himself in hot water with the Match Review Panel after making clear contact.
Despite the indiscretion, it was then all Hawthorn who kicked five successive goals in their best quarter of the game.
The Hawks’ Jordan Lewis spoiled an attempted mark by Neville Jetta and kicked Hawthorn’s fifth. Bradley Hill got the next two for the Hawks and the impressive Liam Shiels was on the end of an incisive Hawks’ movement before Schoenmakers added a ninth.
Seeking to limit Hawthorn’s building attacks, Melbourne slowed the game down with a sequence of marks and static play. But it paid off on the scoreboard as the ball worked its way to the Demons’ attacking 50 and Jack Viney kicked the Demons’ fourth.
Lewis smothered a Viney kick and the Hawks’ worked the ball to Hale who chose to roll a kick in for Hawthown’s tenth.
At halftime, the Hawks led by 39 points, but the second half wasn’t as easy for the Hawks as the premiership leaders only added a further 11 points to their lead.
The third quarter started with Roughead getting his third goal.
The dominant Lewis was temporarily interchanged three minutes into the third quarter after a being slammed to the ground from a hearty Demons’ tackle.
Roughead had his fourth goal from a set shot after effortlessly getting in front of his marker Lynden Dunn.
From the succeeding bounce, Gawn took a mark near the goal square and, despite hesitating on whether to play on or take the set shot, the bearded Demon quickly kicked his second goal and the Melbourne’s first of the second half.
Hawthorn were soon back keeping the scorekeeper busy as Breust continued to make playing AFL look easy and coolly slotted home his second. Roughead then claimed another mark and his fifth goal for Hawthorn’s 14th goal.
A lull in Hawthorn’s attack resulted in two goals for Melbourne. Jay Kennedy-Harris kicked after being awarded a free and roving sub Aiden Riley snapped another after receiving a quick handball.
Breust kicked his third from a set shot and gave Hawthorn a 48-point lead at the last change.
The Demons’ Tyson kicked the first goal of the fourth quarter and to the Dees credit it took the Hawks over 11 minutes to kick their first of the quarter, courtesy of Smith.
Gawn, one of Melbourne’s best in the match, was told to play on when he thought he had taken a mark. Quicker than the umpire could say “-on”, the Demon handballed it to Chris Dawes who kicked Melbourne’s second of the quarter.
Hawthorn’s Paul Puopolo took an incredible hanger mark and kicked the last goal of the game to see the Hawks through to a 115-65 victory over the stubborn Dees.
Roughead was impressive for Hawthorn, but their best was Jordan Lewis who racked up a game-high 34 disposals, as well as seven tackles and six marks to add to his lone goal.
Hawthorn now have a testing run home, facing Fremantle (A) next week followed by Geelong and Collingwood at the MCG.
If Roughead earns himself a suspension, can the Hawks still win their last three and finish minor premiers?
The Demons play GWS at the MCG next week in a fixture that could save either side from the wooden spoon. Do the Dees have enough quality to beat the Giants?
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