1. Rock 'n' Rioli returns
Cyril Rioli started his first match in 10 months on the bench, but the Hawthorn faithful erupted when the 2015 Norm Smith medallist entered the contest in the seventh minute. Rioli's never been a huge accumulator of the Sherrin and he took time to get going, even putting a routine kick – under little pressure – out on the full early. But two defensive acts, one in each of the first two terms, created Hawk goals like only Rioli can. He hounded Brayden Maynard into a turnover on the first of those, before smothering a Tom Langdon handball and putting a dinky kick to Ricky Henderson's advantage. His third quarter goal also earned a huge reception thanks to Paul Puopolo's fancy footwork. Welcome back, Cyril.
Read: Match report - Hawks start 2018 with a bang
2. Tom Mitchell possession watch
No-one (officially) wins the football like Mitchell – and it seems he still holds a grudge about Nathan Buckley's slight from the sides' corresponding clash last year. That night he had 50 touches and earned three Brownlow votes and still couldn't convince Buckley to send a tagger his way. Mitchell himself shrugged the milestone off because it came in defeat. Fast-forward to round one, 2018 and he had 13 disposals by the first break, 29 to half-time and 37 by three-quarter time. Mitchell, who set a new home and away season possessions record with 787 last year, incredibly went on to break dual Brownlow medallist Greg Williams' single-game record of 53 disposals. His 54th possession (27 contested) – his 34th handball – drew a big roar from the attentive crowd. It was also the sixth time Mitchell won at least 40 disposals in a match, and he'll be pleased, because Hawthorn won.
3. Collingwood's impotent attack
Rinse, repeat. Is there a worse forward line in the AFL, especially with Jamie Elliott and Alex Fasolo again sidelined through injury? Mason Cox barely touched the ball when he was forward and Ben Reid, other than a first-minute goal, was mostly a non-factor. Ben Crocker, at 188cm, troubled the Hawks more than any other Pie forward, but this structure isn't going to frighten many opponents. Collingwood had 11 of the first 15 inside 50s in the second term and failed to capitalise before the brown and gold put on the afterburners. Taylor Adams even started at full-forward in the second half. Can Nathan Buckley afford to keep Darcy Moore down back (he went forward in the fourth quarter)? Should All Australian-calibre defender Jeremy Howe return to his forward roots? There is no more pressing issue for the Magpies' brains trust.
4. Going at Jaeger speed
There was genuine fear that Jaeger O'Meara's last rites as an AFL footballer were being written in 2017, when another knee setback put an early pause on the former Sun's new start at the Hawks. Even when he did play, the pace and explosiveness that made him one of the competition's best prospects had faded. The lion's share of his disposals were handballs last year, partly as a result. But O'Meara was back with a vengeance on Saturday night, posting 27 disposals (14 kicks and 14 contested) and six clearances – but also the game's equal-highest maximum speed (33.1 km/h) at half-time. Paul Puopolo (34.6km/h) and Will Hoskin-Elliott (34.2km/h) pipped him by game's end, but Hawthorn must be heartened.
5. Pies' recruits provide positives
A tough night for Collingwood was made that little bit better thanks to first-gamers Jaidyn Stephenson and Sam Murray. Stephenson possesses lightning speed and is one of those footballers who creates something from nothing. He was caught holding the ball on one occasion when he tried to be creative, but the No.6 draft pick from last year has 200 games written all over him. Pies fans were up in arms about the club giving up a second-round selection (in a multiple-pick deal) for little-known Swan Murray, but that anger has dissipated. He shone in Collingwood's second JLT Community Series match and is a good addition to the backline, even if the defensive side of his game remains a work-in-progress.
