1. How even is the competition?
You only have to be a little bit off your game, as the Hawks found out on Friday night against a determined Richmond outfit.
With five rounds to go in the home-and-away season, the Hawks sit third – three games behind ladder-leader Fremantle, level on points with fourth-placed Sydney and just one game ahead of the Tigers and Western Bulldogs.
Arguably there are still seven sides in contention for a top-four finish, with North Melbourne a game further back.
Every win is important, and the Hawks will be fully aware of that with matches against West Coast Eagles, Geelong, Port Adelaide, Brisbane Lions and Carlton to come.
2. Hawks’ scoring restricted by Tigers
The Tigers had the better of the Hawks in a number of key areas in their 18-point win on Friday night.
The most influential factor was the way the Tigers limited the Hawks’ scoring.
Prior to the Round 18 clash, the Hawks had seven consecutive 100-plus point games.
But the Hawks had just 43 inside-50s against the Tigers – well below their season average – and the team’s score of 7.11 (53) was their lowest of the season.
3. Premiership race far from run
Alastair Clarkson described Friday night’s result as perhaps a “wake-up call” for the Hawks and the football world.
"Everyone is saying 'Oh well, you guys have got it'. It's July, for goodness sake. There's a long way to go," Clarkson said post-match.
Externally, there was talk that the Hawks were front runners but internally, the club has always maintained that is far from the case and Clarkson reiterated the fact after his side's loss to the Tigers.
"It is a nice headline for the media scribes to keep writing it is a foregone conclusion that Hawthorn is going to win [the premiership].But we know within our own four walls we have to work really hard," he said.
4. Tackle pressure still strong
Statistically the Hawks were down in a number of areas against the Tigers, but their tackling pressure was still strong.
The Hawks led the Tigers in the tackle count, 71-52.
All bar two Hawks laid multiple tackles throughout the match, with Liam Shiels recording a game-high eight on his return from a corked quad.
5. Beating West Coast a must
If the Hawks are to continue pushing for a top-two finish, beating West Coast at Domain Stadium this week is a must.
The Eagles are six points ahead of the Hawks in second position, after a draw against Gold Coast Suns on Saturday.
Four points for the Hawks this Saturday would keep alive their home qualifying final prospects, while a loss would see the Eagles move an almost insurmountable 10 points clear of the dual reigning premiers with four rounds to play.
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