After Hawthorn’s 29-point win over Collingwood at the MCG on Saturday, hawthornfc.com.au takes a look at the five main points to take out of the game.

1. Ceglar will be hard to shift
The injury to Ben McEvoy in Round 10 gave young ruckman Jonathon Ceglar the opportunity to show he can translate his superior performance at Box Hill to AFL form and he’s done himself no harm in trying to cement his place in the 22.

The Hawks went with Ceglar over McEvoy on Saturday despite the latter having made his return from a corked hamstring with Box Hill last Saturday. While that was partly due to a lack of match conditioning, it was the form of Ceglar too, that made the decision to stick with the no. 18 difficult.

After another impressive performance against the Pies on Saturday, the selection headache in the ruck has now deeper for the Hawks.

Ceglar won 13 hit outs and picked up 13 disposals, six marks and kicked a goal in the win, while at the same time, McEvoy booted five goals in an impressive performance for Hawthorn’s VFL affiliate.

McEvoy is an outstanding ruckman with an elite running capacity, which rivals that of a midfielder but can the Hawks displace Ceglar after another great performance?

2. That three-minute burst
While many speak about the potency of Hawthorn’s forward line, it’s one thing to have dangerous options but it’s another to get yourself into dangerous positions and have the ability to score quickly by taking your chances.

That’s what Hawthorn did between the 25 and 28-minute mark of the third quarter on Saturday, a vital three-minute burst that won them the game.

First, it was an opportune goal from Brad Sewell who made something out of nothing, then it was some brilliance from Paul Puopolo and Cyril Rioli to set up Bradley Hill, then it was Puopolo himself who took an incredible pack mark and converted from 50.

The burst showed the Hawks can kick the goals from anywhere and no matter the position, can turn a half chance into six points.

Then, the most pleasing thing for the coaches and players, is the ability to score against the flow of player and shift momentum back Hawthorn’s way.

The burst was similar to that of the dying moments of the third term against Port Adelaide, when Jordan Lewis sparked a comeback with successive goals (of course result didn’t go Hawthorn’s way in that one but another example of the Hawks’ ability in this area).

3. Can Spangher keep his spot?

He’s a cult figure amongst the fans but Matt Spangher won himself the respect of the competition on Saturday with a fine performance in defence.

The former Swan and Eagle has played just nine games in two years at Hawthorn but his game on Saturday was that of a player who had played over 100 game with his teammates, such was the understanding he had with them in defence.

Spangher played a bit like Josh Gibson in that he was able to zone off his opponent and float in front or come over the top of Travis Cloke.

He was very effective in that role, leading the Hawks for one-percenters (seven) on the day and was listed among the best players. 

But it wasn’t just in his defensive play that Spangher excelled but also in his ability to rebound off half back and release teammates into space on the wings with effective disposal by hand and foot.

He finished with 19 disposals at 94.7 per cent efficiency – the most efficienct of any Hawk on the day – eight rebound 50s, seven marks and five tackles.

4. Hill is on the opposition’s radar
Bradley Hill would have walked out of the MCG on Saturday evening with more knowledge of the game than when he entered.

He was tagged by Collingwood’s Brent Macaffer, who is widely respected as one of the game’s best defensive midfielders - validation for his outstanding form so far this season and in particular his best on ground performance against the Blues in Round 13. 

Hill still managed to make some dashing runs across the wings of the MCG and through the middle of the ground, so he came out of his first experience of a hard tag with the knowledge that he can still have an impact.

He battled on all day and kicked the second of three goals in that match-winning three-minute burst at the end of the third quarter because of his desire to fight through the battle.

Hill finished with 14 disposals, six inside 50s and a goal in the win. He contributed well despite the close attention.

5. Winning the eight-point game
Saturday’s game was an old-fashioned eight-point game, with the victory elevating Hawthorn eight points ahead of a fellow top-four contender.

Heading into the game, just four points separated the Hawks (second) and Pies (fifth), with the winner to cement their place in the top four and stay ahead of the pack of teams on eight wins.

The victory has now cemented Hawthorn’s position in the top four, in second position in fact on percentage.

The Hawks remain equal on points with Sydney (third) after their win over Richmond, four points clear of Fremantle (fourth) and Geelong (fifth) and eight points clear of Collingwood, North Melbourne and Gold Coast who round out the top eight.

Special note: Schoenmakers the forward?
He booted two goals and looked very comfortable as a forward on the weekend, working up the ground to take marks and then apply pressure as the first line of defence. Could he add another dimension to the forward line?