The end of the 2023 season marks the 50^th anniversary of Hawthorn’s last game at its spiritual home of Glenferrie Oval.

A crowd of just 9,932 braved wet conditions at Glenferrie on Saturday, 1 September 1973 and saw the Hawks record a comfortable 37-point win, 16.20.116 to 11.13.79, against wooden-spooners South Melbourne. Michael Moncrieff kicked six goals, ably assisted by Leigh Matthews with three.

Luke Breust is about to join an illustrious list of players who have been Hawthorn’s leading goalkicker on five or more occasions. Breust currently has 45 goals for the season, nine ahead of Mitch Lewis. Breust was previously the leading goalkicker in 2018, 2019, 2021 and 2022.

Others to be leading Hawthorn goalkicker on five or more occasions have been Jason Dunstall (12 times), John Peck (8), Peter Hudson (6), Leigh Matthews (6), Lance Franklin (6), Bert Hyde (5) and Michael Moncrieff (5).

When Blake Hardwick plays his 50th consecutive game this Saturday, he will join a select group to have multiple 50-plus game sequences for Hawthorn.

Hardwick previously completed a sequence of 65 consecutive games from 2017 to 2019 and began his current sequence of 49 consecutive games in Round 19 2021. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Michael Tuck is the only Hawk with three such sequences, with Hardwick joining Roy Simmonds, Peter Crimmins, Kelvin Moore, Chris Langford and Luke Breust with two.

With Jai Newcombe’s late withdrawal last Sunday ending his run of consecutive games at 45, the mantle of current second longest sequence passes to Dylan Moore who has played 44 consecutive games, followed by Conor Nash (36) and James Worpel (22).

Henry Hustwaite has become the first Hawk to kick two goals on debut since Tyler Brockman in Round 1 2021. The only other current Hawthorn player to kick multiple goals in his debut for the club was Chad Wingard who booted three in his first game in the brown and gold in Round 3 2019.

Hustwaite joined an impressive list of debutants in number 44, with Graeme Spark (1976) and Cameron Stokes (2008) both also kicking two goals; John Platten getting two Brownlow votes for his 24 disposals and a goal in 1986; and Jai Newcombe getting a record 13 tackles on debut in 2021.

Hustwaite is the second player recruited from Rosebud to the Hawks. The only previous was five-time Premiership centre half-back, Chris Mew, so Hustwaite is in very good company.

Connor Macdonald will this week claim the mantle of having played the third most games wearing number 31 for Hawthorn.

In just his second season, Macdonald has currently played 40 games which has him tied for third with Greg Madigan (1989-94). Having passed Madigan, the only two ahead of him will be Ricky Henderson (69 games, 2019-21) and the greatest 31 in Hawthorn history, Garry Young, who played 108 games (1956-65) including the 1961 Premiership. Madigan and Stuart Dew were other Premiership-winning number 31s.

Remarkably, this Saturday will be only Hawthorn’s third home game against Fremantle at the MCG in the 24 seasons it has been the club’s home ground. The other two home games at the venue, in 2011 and 2014, both resulted in Hawthorn wins, with the former featuring a stirring last quarter comeback. The teams had one other meeting at the MCG in the 2013 Grand Final.

Hawthorn has an outstanding overall record against Fremantle, leading the head-to-head 28-13, but the Hawks have lost their last five against the Dockers, still one behind Hawthorn’s three sequences of six consecutive wins against Fremantle.

Hawthorn has played Fremantle once before in the final round of the home and away season, in 1998, a game memorable for the farewell appearance of Jason Dunstall. Hawthorn, which had seemed destined for the wooden spoon when 3-14 after Round 17, made it five wins in a row, demolishing Fremantle 22.17.149 to 9.6.60 in front of a Waverley Park crowd of 39,735. Aaron Lord kicked six goals and Jon Hassall got the three Brownlow votes.

There have been four previous Round 24s (1991, 1992, 1994 and 2011), although all as 22-game seasons, unlike the 23 in 2023. Hawthorn has won all four of its previous Round 24 games. 

In Round 24 1991, Hawthorn thrashed Essendon at Waverley, 21.17.143 to 9.9.63, the 80 point-margin enough to secure second place on percentage ahead of Geelong.

Round 24 1992 saw the Hawks win a high-scoring game against Melbourne at the MCG – 22.17.149 to 20.10.130. Jason Taylor achieved the only three-vote performance of his 80 game Hawthorn career, kicking four goals. The win lifted Hawthorn into the Six, at the expense of Carlton.

In contrast to 1992, Round 24 1994 was low scoring, as the Hawks ground out a 9.12.66 to 6.11.47 win against Adelaide at Waverley Park to finish sixth. Chris Langford got the three Brownlow votes for the third time in five rounds.

In Round 24 2011, Hawthorn rested several players for a final round match against Gold Coast at Carrara. Hawthorn scraped home for a nine-point win against the wooden spooners – 16.10.106 to 14.13.97. Luke Breust kicked five goals and secured the first Brownlow votes (2) of his career.

Mark Williams holds the record for most goals by a Hawthorn player against the Dockers, kicking eight against them in Round 1 2006 in Launceston. The record in Round 24 is six by Jason Dunstall against Melbourne in 1992.