This Friday night will be the fourth occasion when Hawthorn plays its first final against its last home and away round opponent.
Taking the optimistic view, in all three previous cases the result in the last round has been repeated in the Final; taking the pessimistic view, Hawthorn has lost on all three previous occasions.
In 1963, a crowd of 35,500 packed Glenferrie in the final round of the home and away season and saw Hawthorn lose to Geelong by 38 points, only consoled by John Peck becoming Hawthorn’s first League leading goalkicker. A fortnight later, after a week’s rest, the two teams met again in the Second Semi Final in front of 91,471 at the MCG with Geelong again successful, this time by 19 points.
In 1974, Hawthorn played North Melbourne in both Round 22 and the Qualifying Final, losing by 29 and 38 points, with inaccurate kicking costing the Hawks in both games, as they recorded 10.17 and then 8.17.
In 1990, Hawthorn had made a late surge to the Finals with six consecutive wins, when it faced Melbourne in Round 22, a match in which Michael Tuck broke Kevin Bartlett’s AFL games record of 403 games. Melbourne led by 39 points at three quarter time but, after storming home, the Hawks only lost by 12 points, rekindling optimism for the following week. Hawthorn had the better of a low-scoring first half, but was then stung by a 6.4 to 1.3 third term. Once again the Hawks rallied in the last quarter but still went down 10.13.73 to 9.16.70. It was to be Allan Jeans’ final game as Hawthorn coach.
***********
Hawthorn has recorded its third highest average home and away attendance in history. In 2013, an average of 40,865 attended the Hawks’ 22 games, which is behind only 2010 (41,915) and 2008 (41,395).
***********
Hawthorn has a good record in Qualifying Finals, having won 10 and lost 5. The record looks even better if one excludes the different types of Qualifying Finals under the original McIntyre Eight (1994-99) which carried the risk of elimination – Hawthorn played two of them and lost both. Overall, the Hawks’ Finals record is 44 wins and 28 defeats from 72 games.
***********
Hawthorn has played South Melbourne / Sydney 154 times, recording 85 wins, 67 defeats and two draws. The two clubs have clashed in five previous Finals, with the Hawks holding a 3-2 advantage having won a Qualifying Final in 1987, an Elimination Final (2001) and a Semi Final (2011), while also losing a Qualifying Final (1996) and last season’s Grand Final. The wins were by the healthy margins of 99, 55 and 36, while the defeats were by just 6 and 10 points.
The Hawks will be playing the Swans in the Finals for the third consecutive season, the first time Hawthorn has met the same opponent in three consecutive Finals Series since playing Carlton in 1986, 1987 and 1988.
***********
The 99 point winning margin in the first Final against Sydney in 1987 is Hawthorn’s biggest ever winning margin in a Final. There have been some other massive wins headed by 96 points in the 1988 Grand Final, 93 points in the 1985 Qualifying Final against Footscray and 83 points in the 1983 Grand Final. On the other side of the ledger, the Hawks heaviest Finals defeat was by 78 points in the 1985 Grand Final.
In that 1987 Final, in front of 47,752 at Waverley, the Hawks led by a comparatively modest 27 points at half-time, but then tore the Swans apart with a 14.8 to 3.2 second half. Dermott Brereton kicked 6 goals, while Gary Buckenara and Jason Dunstall each booted 5. Buckenara had 32 disposals, Robert Diperdomenico 31 and John Kennedy Jnr. 27.
***********
The win at Stadium Australia last Friday night means that 2013 has joined 1994 and 2008 as seasons when Hawthorn has completed a clean sweep of four ‘away’ interstate wins. This season the Hawks won at West Coast, Adelaide, Port Adelaide and Sydney, while in the club’s most recent Premiership season, 2008 the wins were away to Fremantle, Brisbane Lions, Adelaide and West Coast.
***********
Hawthorn’s last two wins after trailing at every change have both come in the final round of the home and away season. In Round 22 2010, the Hawks beat Collingwood by 3 points after trailing by 4, 11 and 11 at the breaks, while in Round 23 2013, the deficits were 18, 9 and 10 before the eventual 12 point victory.
************
The fact that Hawthorn is playing this coming Friday night means that it narrowly misses out on playing on Federal Election day. In the past, the Hawks have played on six Federal Election days and, in a strange quirk, Hawthorn wins (in 1943, 1974, 1987 and 2010) on Election Day have coincided with Labor wins, while losses (in 1951 and 1954) coincided with Coalition victories.
***********
The most goals by a Hawthorn player in the first week of the Finals is the 8 by Michael Moncrieff in the 1978 Qualifying Final versus Collingwood, equalled by Lance Franklin’s 8 against the Western Bulldogs in 2008. Peter Hudson holds the individual goals record for Hawthorn against the Swans, twice kicking 13 in consecutive matches in Round 11, 1969 and Round 8, 1970.
