Hawthorn 5.6 11.11 20.20 28.25 (193)                  
Greater Western Sydney 1.2 2.4 3.5 4.7 (31)
Best: Hawthorn: Rioli, Suckling, Birchall, Lewis, Shiels, Roughead, Mitchell
Greater Western Sydney: Greene, Coniglio, Cornes, Adams
Crowd: 26,518 at the MCG

The Hawks systematically dismantled the Giants and cut holes through their defensive structure all day on the way to a massive162-point victory at the MCG in Round 15 last season.

It was men against boys, and those men put in one of their most impressive performances of the season. It wasn’t a simple case of the Hawks playing a team in their first season and a Club that has won just one game for the season.

There was much more to it than that.

The Hawks executed their game plan magnificently, with their run, spread and ability to find a teammate in space a feature of their game all day.

In all four quarters, the Hawks held their disposal efficiency above 82 per cent, and reached a game high of 84 per cent in the second quarter. In addition, the Hawks had 102 more effective kicks than the Giants, 194-92, emphasising that their foot skills are one of the best in the league and when given the opportunity, the Hawks will cut their opposition to shreds.

The ability to combine attack with defence, however, was perhaps the most pleasing for Coach Alastair Clarkson. Despite having 129 more disposals than the Giants (454-325), the Hawks out tackled their opponents, 60-42.

It was a ruthless display by the Hawks, who, after getting smashed in the clearances in the first quarter (5-13), improved their ability to win the footy around the packs. Greater Western Sydney ruckman Jonathan Gileswas one of the Giants’ best in the opening term, dominating the hit outs 12-6, with five of those finding a teammate.

After quarter time, however, David Hale and Jarryd Roughead were able to nullify Giles’ ruck dominance and assert themselves on the game. In the second term, Giles managed just one hit out to advantage as Hawthorn midfielders Jordan Lewis, Liam Shiels and Sam Mitchell sharked his taps.

Roughead and Hale proved in the third that they can be as damaging as any ruck combination in the league,palming five hit outs to Hawthorn’s advantage to finish with 10 for the match.

The Hawks were given a paddock to work in throughout the day, as the Giants failed to close down Hawthorn’s space. From the outset, the Hawks effortlessly found teammates in space, finishing the match with a massive 325 uncontested possessions.

While the Hawks enjoyed the wide open spaces of the MCG, the Giants weren’t afforded the same luxury, managing 201 uncontested possessions. It was the ferocious tackling and pressure that the Hawks unleashed that limited that number, with Cyril Rioli (nine tackles), Luke Breust (eight), Isaac Smith (seven) and Liam Shiels (six) leading the way.

That Hawks were at their stingy best in defence, allowing just eleven scoring shots for four goals. Matt Sucklingwas one of the best performers for the Hawks, his team-high 35 disposals, eight inside 50s, two rebound 50s and one goal made him one of the most damaging players on the ground.

The Hawthorn defence has the unique ability to combine defence with attack that is arguably the key to the Hawthorn style. Grant Birchall grabbed another 30 disposals while Josh Gibson managed 26 as he patrolled and stunted most of the Giants’ attacks going forward.

What Alastair Clarkson said: “We just had to play our style of footy and for the bulk of the game I thought we did that. GWS as you’d expect were really good at the contested footy and the clearances early in the game and we were a bit disappointed in that element of the game early.

“After quarter time we started to get on top in those two areas of the game and it really opened up for us.”