This Saturday, Hawthorn will be trying to avoid losing five consecutive games to St Kilda for the first time since the 1960s.

The Hawks’ current sequence of four losses against the Saints, encompasses defeats at Docklands in 2019 and 2021, at Metricon Stadium in 2020 and at the MCG in Round 4 this season. It has joined two other sequences of four defeats against St Kilda in the past 50 years, one in 1972-73 and the other in 2003-06.

The current sequence has a way to go to match the eight consecutive Hawthorn losses to St Kilda from 1964 to 1969, which is the equal second worst, behind only a run of 11 successive defeats from 1933 to 1940. On the other hand, Hawthorn won 20 consecutive games against St Kilda from 1979 to 1989, the club’s second-best winning run against any opponent.

Overall, Hawthorn and St Kilda have met 160 times with the Hawks winning 82 and the Saints 76, plus two draws.

This week, Hawthorn will be hoping to win four games in a row in the same season for the first time since winning the last six home and away games of 2018. The Hawks also won four games in a row when combining the last three games of 2019 with a victory in Round 1 2020.

Could 2022 become the first year in Hawthorn’s 98 seasons in the VFL-AFL when the club has joint leading goal-kickers? With four rounds to go, Mitch Lewis (37 goals) and Luke Breust (36 goals) are separated by just one major, so it is certainly a possibility.

There was sad news last week with the death of Justin Crawford at the age of just 45. After crossing from Sydney, Crawford played 29 games and kicked 21 goals for Hawthorn in 1997-98.

Crawford’s final game, when he played with his older brother Shane in a victory against Brisbane Lions at the Gabba in Round 20 1998, remains the most recent case of brothers playing together in a Hawthorn team.

Hawthorn’s results in its last nine games share a strong resemblance to those of reigning Premier Melbourne. Both teams have a 4-5 record in that period, and both have wins against Brisbane Lions, Adelaide, and North Melbourne. The only difference in the wins’ column is that Melbourne beat Port Adelaide, compared to Hawthorn defeating West Coast. Both also share losses to Collingwood, Fremantle and the Western Bulldogs in the past nine.

Hawthorn’s score of 19.7.121 last Saturday against North Melbourne was its highest since recording 18.16.124 versus Carlton in Round 18 2018. The opening term of 8.1 was the Hawks’ best first quarter since recording 8.4, also against North Melbourne, in Round 21 2016.

Scoring 121 also means that Hawthorn has now recorded exactly 185,000 points in the 2055 games it has played in the VFL-AFL since joining the competition in 1925.

The 46-point victory at Blundstone Arena also kept the Hawks’ average winning margin in games in Hobart above 100. When combined with the 157-point win against Fitzroy at North Hobart in 1991, the average winning margin in Hobart is 101.5.

The result also continued Hawthorn’s outstanding recent record when Ben McEvoy is in the team. McEvoy’s last eight games have produced seven wins and a draw.

Hawthorn has played 54 matches in Round 20, winning 31 and losing 23. The Hawks won in Round 20 for six consecutive seasons from 2010 to 2015, recorded a memorable four-point win against Essendon in 2018 and last season in Round 20 defeated Brisbane Lions by 12 points in Launceston. The first Round 20 was played in 1945 to provide extra games to compensate for those lost during the war. It has been a permanent part of the fixture since 1968 (apart from 2020).

10 years ago, in Round 20 2012, Hawthorn thrashed Port Adelaide in Launceston by 72 points – 24.15.159 to 13.7.87. The margin was only 21 points at the final change, but an 11.3 to 3.0 last quarter produced the convincing final margin.

The Hawks were missing both star key forwards, Lance Franklin and Jarryd Roughead, but still piled on 24 goals with 13 individual goalkickers headed by Paul Puopolo (5), David Hale (4) and Luke Breust (3). Grant Birchall had 32 disposals (the fifth highest tally of his career) and got the 10 Coaches Votes, but Sam Mitchell (29 disposals) got the three Brownlow votes.

30 years ago, in Round 20 1992, Hawthorn recorded one of its biggest ever wins, thrashing Essendon by 160 points at the MCG. The winning margin and the score of 32.24.216 are both the third highest in the club’s VFL-AFL history. Jason Dunstall kicked 12 goals, but only got two Brownlow votes, as the three votes went to Tony Hall who had 34 disposals and kicked three goals.

40 years ago, in Round 20 1982, Hawthorn thrashed Finals’ aspirant Sydney by 64 points at Princes Park.  After a reasonably even first half, the Hawks powered away after half-time.  Leigh Matthews, Geoff Ablett and John Kennedy each kicked three goals, while Terry Wallace and Michael Tuck starred.

50 years ago, in Round 20 1972, Hawthorn also recorded a good win against Essendon.  Hawthorn won 15.16.106 to 12.15.87, setting up the victory with a 6.5 to 0.5 opening term with the standout performer being Michael Moncrieff who kicked 10 goals on his 20^th birthday in just his 16^th game. It culminated a three-week period in which he kicked 24 goals. Peter Crimmins chipped in with three goals.

Peter Hudson holds the record for the highest number of goals by a Hawthorn player against St Kilda, kicking 12 at Glenferrie in Round 15 1971 in a match which was a preview of the season’s Grand Final.

The Round 20 Hawthorn individual goals record is held by Jason Dunstall, who kicked 12 goals against Essendon in 1992 (see above). Other 10 goal-plus Round 20 hauls were Dunstall’s 11 versus Collingwood in 1990 and Michael Moncrieff’s 10 against Essendon in 1972 (see above).