1. Tassie says farewell to Hodge
Whether it was the special appearance of Eurovision contestant Isaiah Firebrace, the pyrotechnics show or the gigantic number 15 jersey that adorned the centre square pre-match, there was little doubt Luke Hodge's last game in Launceston was going to be celebrated in style. The 303-game veteran is adored by Hawks fans all over the country, but given the reception he received with every disposal on Sunday, he has clearly made an awesome impression on those loyal Tassie Hawks fans. Marshalling the Hawthorn defence assuredly, Hodge finished with 29 disposals and nine marks to be among the best for Hawthorn.
2. North's bruise-free first half
Of Hodge's 15 touches at the long break, 13 had been uncontested, perfectly illustrating the trend across the ground where the Hawks enjoyed 47 more uncontested touches than the Kangaroos at half-time. They were also racking up uncontested marks and aside from a handful of sloppy turnovers were completely dominating proceedings. Although the Roos were able to win more of the contested ball – and dominated centre clearances 11-4 in the first half – their inability to pressurise Hawthorn's ball movement gave an air of inevitability to proceedings until North switched on during a seven-goals-to-five third term.
3. Brown a beacon for North
Tasmanian full-forward Ben Brown took his place in the North line-up despite being concussed last weekend against Collingwood. He wasted no time making an impact. His first involvement was a bad miss from his first shot on goal, but far from sitting back he threw himself into the contest and was unlucky to be denied what looked like a towering pack mark. The Coleman Medal hopeful turned provider to help lay on North's first goal to Kayne Turner before earning a roar from the crowd when a clever left-foot snap saw him hit the scoreboard and cap off an impressive opening term.
4. Roos find their fight
Brad Scott brought his whole group in tight at three-quarter time, clearly urging his troops to continue the five-goal run that saw them roar back into the contest during the second half of the third term. Just when it had seemed that Hawthorn would continue to pull clear having booted the first two majors after half-time, that man Brown came to the party with two goals – and was matched by Taylor Garner who added two of his own to breathe life into what had been a relatively lacklustre contest in front of 14,509 at University of Tasmania Stadium.
5. Another big game for Big Boy
Hawthorn ruckman Ben McEvoy continued his run of impressive form, with another 20 hit out, 12 disposal, six mark game, at 100 per cent efficiency. McEvoy also had three goal assists, including two impressive collects from ground level that ruckmen of his stature should not be able to do - resulting in two Luke Breust goals. The 28-year-old is averaging 32 hit outs a game this season, far exceeding his previous best of 25 (2012 at St Kilda). Could McEvoy be Hawthorn's first ruckman in contention for All Australian honours since Peter Everitt in 2005? He's got some strong competition, but McEvoy's recent performances are doing his AA chances no harm at all.
