The history books shine brightly on Hawthorn’s 1983 premiership victory as the beginning of the club’s great golden era of the ‘80s.

It was the first of an astonishing seven successive Grand Final appearances across a magical decade, which saw the brown and gold taste the ultimate success four times. The stunning consecutive Grand Final run remains a record to this day.

The Hawks were among the most imposing teams in 1983, with no shortage of stars across every line including Michael Tuck, Terry Wallace, Peter Knights and Gary Buckenara, led by the formidable coach-captain duo of Allan Jeans and Leigh Matthews.

COME CELEBRATE OUR '83 PREMIERSHIP REUNION - TICKETS ARE ON SALE HERE

Hawthorn would close out the home and away season in red-hot form, winning nine of its final 11 games to secure second spot on the ladder ahead of a highly-anticipated finals series.

However, the Hawks momentum very nearly stalled at the first hurdle. They were forced to dig deep to hold off a fast-finishing Fitzroy by just four points in the first final to set up a semi-final showdown against minor-premiers North Melbourne.

Despite a spot in the decider on the line against the Kangaroos, Hawthorn was slow out of the blocks and suddenly found itself behind at the first change.

Fortunately, Allan Jeans’ men managed to settle and wrestle back control of the game at the main break, before kicking ahead in the second half to run home convincing 40-point winners.

The victory propelled the brown and gold back into the big dance for the first time in five years where it would face Essendon in a blockbuster contest on the last Saturday in September.

The Hawks and Bombers couldn’t be split by the bookies at the first bounce, beginning the match as equal favourites. As more than 110,000 fans filled the MCG, not even the most loyal Hawthorn faithful supporter could have predicted what would transpire over the next two-and-a-half hours.

In Hawthorn’s first entry into attack, the ferocity of the brown and gold was on full show, with star duo Peter Knights and Leigh Matthews colliding while steaming towards the same ball.

Just minutes later, the Hawks appeared to have suffered a major setback as forward Gary Buckenara went down with a serious knee injury, which sidelined him for the remainder of the match.

The incident would do little to deter Hawthorn’s focus, as speedster Rodney Eade helped orchestrate the opening goal with a slick pass to Richard Loveridge, who booted the easiest of majors unopposed from the goal line.

The Hawks maintained the momentum after hitting the scoreboard first, as Leigh Matthews began to get busy in front of goal, with two majors to his name in the opening stand.

The skipper’s early dominance helped lift his side to a handy 18-point lead at the first change, before the Bombers reduced the margin to just two straight kicks only minutes into the second quarter.

With both sides going blow for blow, it appeared the heavyweight decider had many more twists and turns to come. But it was at this moment the Hawks launched arguably the greatest Grand Final goal avalanche in history.

In a brilliant display of attacking and running football, the smooth-moving Hawks piled on 13 unanswered majors to storm towards one of the most memorable premierships in the club’s history.

Matthews continued his crafty work in the forward half to finish with a game-high six goals, as Hawthorn’s lead stretched beyond 100 points in the last quarter.

The final margin of 83 points re-wrote the record books at the time as the competition’s largest ever grand final victory, as the Hawks lifted the premiership cup for the fifth time.

Midfielder Collin Robertson collected the Norm Smith Medal on the back of a 29-possession performance, while Michael Byrne, Russell Greene, Ken Judge, Richard Loveridge rounded out the multiple goal-kickers for the victorious Hawks.

For master-coach Jeans, it was his first taste of the ultimate success in the brown and gold – etching his name into Hawthorn’s history books – with more to come just around the corner.

As for Matthews, it would be his fourth and final premiership for his beloved Hawks. The inspirational skipper would retire two seasons later having played 332 games for Hawthorn and booting 915 goals.

The spoils of the 1983 premiership are still felt to this very day by all those bleeding brown and gold – the historic Grand Final win setting the club on a path to one of the most successful decades in memory.

Hawthorn is delighted to invite all members and supporters to attend the 40-year reunion of this 1983 Grand Final win, as the club honours its premiership heroes of years past. Please see the details below.

Mighty Fighting Hawks – 1983 Premiership Reunion

DATE: Saturday 18 March

TIME: 12pm

DRESS: Lounge suit/cocktail

PRICE: $235-550

TICKETS: https://www.hfchospitality.com.au/1983-premiership-reunion

1983 GRAND FINAL MATCH SUMMARY

Hawthorn: 5.6 (36) | 12.10 (82) | 16.18 (114) | 20.20 (140)

(def)

Essendon: 3.0 (18) | 4.1 (25) | 4.3 (27) | 8.9 (57)

Coach: Allan Jeans
Captain: Leigh Matthews

Backs: Gary Ayres (7), Chris Mew (46), David O’Halloran (8)
Half-backs: Russell Greene (29), Michael McCarthy (20), John Kennedy Jnr (34)
Centres: Rodney Eade (26), Terry Wallace (16), Peter Schwab (30)
Half-forwards: Peter Knights (24), Dermott Brereton (23), Gary Buckenara (11)
Forwards: Leigh Matthews (3), Michael Byrne (21), Richard Loveridge (22)
Followers: Ian Paton (12), Michael Tuck (17), Colin Robertson (32)

Interchange: Ken Judge (1), Robert DiPierdomenico (9)

Goals: Matthews 6, Byrne 3, Greene 2, Judge 2, Kennedy Jnr 1, Knights 1, Loveridge 2, O’Halloran 1, Tuck 1, Wallace 1

Best Players: Greene, Kennedy Jnr, Knights, Matthews, Robertson, Tuck,

Norm Smith Medal: Colin Robertson

Umpires: Neville Nash, Kevin Smith (at MCG, Saturday, September 24, 1983)

Attendance: 110,332