In a Tweet
"That's what I'm talking about."
— Hawthorn FC (@HawthornFC) August 25, 2017
What a way to farewell a true Hawthorn great. #StrongAsOne #AFLHawksDogs pic.twitter.com/x4Udt4cNKU
The Rundown
This Round 23 clash was a dead-rubber, with both Hawthorn and the Western Bulldogs drawing to a close disappointing seasons. For the Bulldogs, especially, it had been a disastrous year as they became the first side since the Hawks in 2009 to miss finals the year after winning the premiership.
But the game still carried significance in that both clubs were farewelling champions. For the Dogs, Bob Murphy and Matthew Boyd while the Hawks faithful said goodbye to Luke Hodge and Josh Gibson, who was albeit on the sidelines.
Although the Hawks held the lead for the majority of the night, the margin never surpassed a five-goal buffer throughout.
The Bulldogs were gallant in the final term but were ultimately unable to overcome Hawthorn, who finished nine-point victors.
The Star
Jarryd Roughead finished off an impressive season with arguably his best performance of the year. The Hawks skipper kicked five goals in an awesome display that also saw him record 19 disposals and six tackles. Roughead was especially dominant in the air, taking ten marks including three contested.
The Moment
With two minutes to go in the game, the Bulldogs had closed the gap to get within ten points. A long kick inside their forward 50 from Tom Liberatore looked threatening, with a waiting Luke Dahlhaus sitting under the high ball. But at the last moment, Luke Hodge, in his final game for the Hawks, came over the top to impact a perfect spoil over the boundary line and save the game one last time for the Hawks.
The Coach
"It's a pity there had to be a winner and a loser out of those two sides. We're pleased for 'Hodgey' and 'Gibbo' that we were able to get the win to make it a nice finish to his career”.
- Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson
HAWTHORN 5.3 9.5 12.6 15.9 (99)
WESTERN BULLDOGS 4.2 7.4 10.7 13.12 (90)
GOALS
Hawthorn: Roughead 5, Smith 3, Puopolo 3, Burgoyne, Sicily, Schoenmakers, O'Brien
Western Bulldogs: Picken 3, Hunter 2, Dale 2, Campbell, Murphy, Boyd, Dahlhaus, Liberatore, McLean
BEST
Hawthorn: Roughead, McEvoy, Sicily, Smith, Puopolo, Mitchell, O'Meara
Western Bulldogs: Macrae, McLean, Boyd, Picken, Suckling, Hunter
INJURIES
Hawthorn: Nil
Western Bulldogs: Nil
Reports: Nil
Umpires: Fisher, Dalgleish, Stevic
Official crowd: 48,090 at Etihad Stadium