The Box Hill Hawks have earned themselves a place in a blockbuster semi-final against Geelong following an incredible 11-point win over Port Melbourne in their elimination final on Saturday.

With scores all tied up at the final siren, the match required two halves of extra time where the Hawks were able to pull away and record a famous win.

Coach Chris Newman reviews the performances of each AFL-listed player below.

Read: A stunning VFL elimination final win

James Cousins

31 disposals, 4 marks, 5 tackles and 1 goal

“He was obviously one of our better players on the day. He continually not only wins contested ball for us and clearance but he hits the scoreboard as well for us. Probably the highlight of the day was when he was against two, got to his feet, fended off one and went forward to kick a goal. I think it was in the last quarter and it was a really important moment for us. His work in and around contest is outstanding. He is providing stuff on the outside for us now which is a real feather in his cap.” CN

Dan Howe

25 disposals, 6 marks, 8 tackles

“Howie came on at quarter time and we expected him to take a bit of time to get into it. But he hit the ground running and had some real impact for us with his contested work. He provided some physicality for us, he is obviously a bigger-bodied mid so that was really important for us in the context of the day. He was really instrumental in negating a couple of their stronger midfielders as well. He will obviously put his hand up this week.” CN

Tim O’Brien

23 disposals, 8 marks, 2 tackles

“I thought O’Brien was outstanding playing back. He has looked more and more comfortable as the weeks have progressed and he is really enjoying his time down back. We can always throw him forward which we know. But I feel like we get most benefit out of him being back at the moment. He has taken 11 marks from opposition boot over the last two weeks so he is becoming a real strength of ours. His ball-use is good as well, he likes to kick the ball and he kicks it really well. He was high with out pressure acts as well.” CN

Kieran Lovell

22 disposals, 2 marks, 5 tackles 

“Lovell is another player who has been building his game over the last few weeks. He is starting to accumulate the sort of possession numbers that we feel like he can. The greatest thing about his game, outside of his work in tight, was his pressure. He has been trying to add that defensive part of his game. He played mid pretty much the whole game.” CN

Brendan Whitecross

20 disposals, 3 marks, 2 tackles, 2 goals 

“Whitecross was pretty much Mr Fix It again. He played forward where he kicked two goals and also played a little bit on-ball. He was strong in the contest and, given that the ground was really wet, he was important for us in keeping the ball inside our forward 50.” CN

Dallas Willsmore

19 disposals, 8 marks, 3 tackles

“He is accumulating some more possession now playing on the wing. He is helping our defence by running some really strong patterns. He had to play back at times just out of necessity but he actually held his own quite well there. I think his kicking efficiency was quite good again as usual despite the wet day.” CN

Olly Hanrahan

18 disposals, 2 marks, 5 tackles, 2 goals 

“Hanrahan played on-ball in the first half and forward in the second half. He had an impact in both lines. He kicked two goals. Obviously his ability to get forward of the play and roll the dice in that last play of the game was obviously the difference that we are still in the finals. His forward pressure was outstanding in the third quarter when we really needed it. He can hold his head up high with the amount of pressure he was applying.” CN

Teia Miles

15 disposals, 4 marks, 2 tackles

“We probably didn’t get the run and carry that we usually get with ‘Milesy’ but, given the conditions, it was a take-ground kind of game. He will look to get back to his run and carry style of game wherever he plays this week. He was quite good defensively which is quite good to see as well.” CN

Kaiden Brand

14 disposals, 5 marks, 1 tackle

“Brand played on Lisle, who kicked a goal late in the last quarter but he did well to negate him up until then. He won quite a few of his battles and finished with 10 rebound 50s which shows he provided us with a fair bit of offensive stuff as well. He usually uses the ball quite well and his defensive aspects of the game were spot on.” CN

Taylor Duryea

14 disposals, 7 marks, 6 tackles

“Duryea was similar. He didn’t have a huge amount of it in the way of numbers, but he was really effective with the way he used the ball for us. His defensive stuff too, he was hitting in as hard as I’ve seen from him. He had a couple of desperate acts in the back half that lifted the team. We know that he also has the ability to go forward so we might look to explore that too.” CN

Jono O’Rourke

14 disposals, 1 mark, 6 tackles 

“It wasn’t his greatest game. He started on the wing and then he threw him on-ball. I think he was hampered by a bit of niggle which might have restricted him somewhat but he knows his output can be a lot better than that.” CN

Marc Pittonet

14 disposals, 6 tackles, 69 hit-outs

“He competed really hard in the ruck with his hit-out numbers showing he had dominance in there. He’s really focussing on his second efforts and tackling pressure where he can have a lot of impact.” CN

Jackson Ross

14 disposals, 3 marks, 2 goals

“It was really good to see Rossy have some impact. He just has a smart football brain and he can read the play ahead of time and get to some really good areas. So, for his first VFL final we were really pleased with his output.” CN

Mitch Lewis

13 disposals, 3 marks, 1 tackle, 1 goal

“Mitch competed really hard. He probably had his most influence when he went and played in the ruck. We know we get that with Mitch, with his ability to not only play forward but to mix that with some ruckwork as well is really important for our structure. He provided some good contests when he was forward and gave our small forwards a few opportunities.” CN

Dylan Moore

13 disposals, 5 marks, 5 tackles, 1 goal

“If he could’ve kicked straight he would have finished with a really strong game. He had five shots on goal but missed four of them. He played a little bit wing but we felt we were getting our most benefit out of him when we had him forward. He has an elite tank which helps with his pressure and his ability to get up and down the ground. His input was outstanding.” CN

Conor Glass

11 disposals, 5 marks, 4 tackles

“Not his greatest day either but he still had a pretty strong contribution, especially with his defensive actions. All of our defenders did well but we’d like to get the ball in Conor’s hands a bit more. We know what he likes to do when he gets the footy.” CN

Changkuoth Jiath

4 disposals, 1 mark, 7 tackles

“Another low-possession game but his seven tackles and some of his chase-down pressure was terrific. He is still learning his craft as a backman but if he can get some consistency with the offensive and defensive stuff he will be a great player for us. Another young kid playing his first final which is a terrific experience for him.” CN