UNSW Canberra Oval will this week become the 32nd venue at which Hawthorn has played a VFL-AFL game. Playing a game in the ACT, will leave the Northern Territory as the only state or territory where Hawthorn has not played.

The Hawks will be hoping to build on their win at Optus Stadium last season and improve a previous poor record in venue debuts. Hawthorn has won just six of the 31 first games at venues. The club got off to a bad start losing at all 12 original grounds in 1925-26, and then suffering debut defeats at its next six new venues between 1941 and 1970.

Hawthorn finally won a venue debut game at the 19^th attempt at the SCG in 1979 and since then the Hawks have won first-up at Carrara, North Hobart, Docklands, York Park (now University of Tasmania Stadium) and Optus Stadium. However, there have been further debut defeats at the Gabba, Subiaco, WACA Ground, Football Park, Stadium Australia, Adelaide Oval and Spotless Stadium.

Big margins have also often been associated with these games with the Hawks winning by 157 points (North Hobart), 95 (Carrara), 59 (at both Docklands and Optus Stadium) and 51 (SCG), but losing by 143 points at the MCG in 1926 and 86 points at Football Park in 1991.

While Hawthorn has never previously played a VFL-AFL game in the nation’s capital, it did play two Canberra games in the Night Series/Pre-Season competition, in the 1990s. Both games were against Sydney, and both were played at what was then called Bruce Stadium (now called Canberra Stadium), home of the Canberra Raiders (NRL) and Brumbies (Super Rugby).

On Sunday, 25 February 1990, Hawthorn lost by ten points – 16.9.105 to 13.17.95 - in front of a crowd of 12,314 in what was then called the Fosters Cup.

By 1995, the competition had become the Ansett Cup and a crowd of 11,464 turned up on the afternoon of Saturday 4 March 1995. After an even first half, Hawthorn dashed out to a 34-point lead early in the third quarter and looked to be on the way to victory, However, Sydney stormed back with the next nine goals and went onto win 18.11.119 to 16.10.106. Jason Dunstall kicked seven goals and Paul Hudson four, while Tony Lockett in his first competitive game for the Swans also booted four goals.

The 1995 game is best remembered for what the Hawks wore. It was the game when Hawthorn wore the infamous harlequin jumper.

This Friday night, Hawthorn will be hoping to become the first away team to win a game between Hawthorn and GWS Giants. In eight previous meetings between the two clubs, the home team has won seven and there was a draw in Launceston in 2017. The victory at the MCG in Round 8 this season gave Hawthorn four wins in the fixture to the Giants’ tally of three.

Since it was first contested in 1970, Round 21 has been one of the best rounds for Hawthorn, with 35 wins and only 14 defeats, including victories in 13 consecutive Round 21 matches between 1982 and 1994 and eight consecutive wins between 2006 and 2013. After losses in 2014 and 2015, Hawthorn has now had three more Round 21 wins, beating North Melbourne in 2016 and 2017, and Geelong last season.

A feature of Hawthorn’s Round 21 wins is massive winning margins. In fact, five of the 27 one hundred-point victories in Hawthorn history have occurred in Round 21, more than in any other round. These were in 1983 (versus Melbourne), 1986 (Geelong), 1991 (Fitzroy), 2010 (Fremantle) and 2011 (Port Adelaide).

10 years ago, in Round 21 2009, Hawthorn recorded a 42-point win against Richmond at the MCG – 20.15.135 to 14.9.93. Lance Franklin kicked five goals but also received a two-week suspension. Beau Dowler kicked a career-high four goals, while Sam Mitchell, Luke Hodge, Chance Bateman and Brad Sewell were all prolific ball-winners.

20 years ago, in Round 21 1999, the second last ever Waverley Park game delivered a Saturday night classic, as Hawthorn 15.13.103 defeated Geelong 15.11.101. 

The Hawks began slowly but got back on terms in a high-scoring second term, in which the two sides booted 14 goals between them. In contrast, the final term produced only two goals, the first ensuring that Geelong held sway for much of the quarter; the second from Aaron Lord with only his third kick of the night clinching victory for the Hawks against his former (and future) club.  Shane Crawford became even firmer Brownlow favourite with a brilliant 28-disposal game, while Nick Holland also starred with five goals. For the second week in a row Michael Collica helped save the game, this time by taking a crucial defensive mark in the dying moments. 

Hawthorn fans headed home with hopes that their team might be playing for a Finals’ spot the following week, but these hopes disappeared when Sydney beat Fremantle in Perth later in the evening.