This week marks the 100^th anniversary of Hawthorn’s first ever game in a senior football competition and the first time the club wore brown and gold.

It was on Monday 13 April 1914 that Hawthorn played its first game in the VFA at Port Melbourne, going down to the home team by 41 points – 9.9.63 to 16.8.104. The game had originally been scheduled to be played a fortnight later on the Eight Hour Day holiday, but there was an outcry about playing on that day and diverting attention from its purpose, so the round was brought forward to Easter Monday, ahead of what had been the planned opening round on Saturday 18 April.

Hawthorn changed its colours from blue and gold to brown and gold for the 1914 season to prevent a clash with the colours of existing VFA club Williamstown. Hawthorn went onto win 3 games and draw one in its 18-game 1914 season.

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Hawthorn has won all four matches it has played against Gold Coast, twice at the MCG and once at Aurora Stadium and Metricon Stadium. That one previous Metricon encounter was in Round 24 2011, a game in which Hawthorn rested several senior players.

The Suns led by 11 points at half time before the Hawks fought back to win 16.10.106 to 14.13.97. Paul Johnson played his only game for Hawthorn and accumulated more hit outs than any other ruckman from either side and also kicked a goal.

Hawthorn has played six other games at the Carrara ground, including five away games against the Brisbane Bears, when it was their home ground between 1987 and 1992. The Hawks won four but suffered a shock loss in 1989.

Then, in 2006, Hawthorn played a home game at Carrara against the Brisbane Lions. It was not an auspicious occasion, as Hawthorn failed to score in the opening quarter and went down to a 40 point defeat.

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A victory against Gold Coast on Saturday night will create a Hawthorn record for consecutive wins against a new opponent. The only other club which Hawthorn has previously beaten in their first four matches was Brisbane. Apart from the two Queensland clubs, the only other opponents against which Hawthorn has a debut winning sequence of more than one are Fremantle and GWS (2 each). Other clubs which the Hawks commenced against with a single win were Footscray and Port Adelaide.

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In Round 4, Hawthorn has won 38, lost 48, played two draws (1939 and 1996) and had one bye (1991). Hawthorn took longer to win in Round 4 than in any other round. It was not until 1941 that the club tasted success after 15 losses and one draw. The Hawks best Round 4 sequence was eight consecutive wins from 1974 to 1981. Last season in Round 4 Hawthorn defeated Fremantle at Aurora Stadium by 42 points.

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40 years ago, in Round 4 1974, Hawthorn won a home game at its new home of Princes Park for the first time, beating Essendon 9.15.69 to 5.13.43. As with its one previous home game there, a fortnight earlier against Collingwood, it was played in wet conditions. Leigh Matthews and Geoff Ablett were the leading kick-getters with 24 each, while Matthews was also the leading goalkicker with 3.

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The individual goal-kicking record for Hawthorn against Gold Coast is five, held jointly by Luke Breust (2011) and Lance Franklin (2013). Michael Moncrieff has the best tally in Round 4, kicking 9 goals at Waverley Park against South Melbourne in 1979.