Hawthorn lost its record for the highest first quarter score in VFL-AFL history last Sunday. 

The Hawks set the previous record of 13.3.81 against North Melbourne in 1982, and while it had been equalled by North against Richmond in 1990, Essendon’s 15.4.94 raised the bar considerably.

In a 1982 match versus North, at Princes Park in Round 16, Hawthorn went onto kick what was then a new Club record score of 32.14.206, since exceeded on three other occasions.  In the high-scoring year of 1982, North also kicked what might normally be considered a winning tally of 15.22.112, but still lost by 94 points.  For the Hawks, Leigh Matthews kicked seven goals, Gary Buckenara five, Michael Byrne five and John Kennedy four, while Michael Tuck and Terry Wallace each had 34 disposals.

The 13.3 opening quarter remains the second highest score for any quarter in Hawthorn history, only exceeded by the 13.4 final term against Geelong at Princes Park in 1986.



The attendance of 78,579 against Geelong last week was the third highest ever to witness a Hawthorn home and away game.  The only larger crowds were 92,935 who went to Waverley on the Queen’s Birthday Monday in 1981 to see the Hawthorn play Collingwood and the MCG crowd of 86,179 who saw the Friday night top of the table clash between the Hawks and Cats in 2008.

The attendance was also the 50th time Hawthorn has had a home and away attendance of over 50,000.  The first such crowd was against Melbourne at the MCG on Anzac Day, 1963.  Of the 50, the MCG has produced 36, Waverley 10 and Docklands four, while when it comes to opponents Collingwood head the list with 20, followed by Essendon nine, Geelong six (the last six meetings), Carlton five, Melbourne five, Richmond four and Sydney one.



This is the seventh season in which Hawthorn has participated in the VFL-AFL when there have been byes, the previous ones being 1942-43 (11 team competition with Geelong absent during Second World War) and 1991-94 (15 team competition).

Round 6 has been a popular round for Hawthorn to have the bye, having previously had it in 1942, 1943 and 1994.  Hawthorn won in Round 7 in the latter two and overall has a very positive 8-2 record in the rounds following a bye.



Hawthorn has won just two of ten ‘away’ games against Port Adelaide, the victories coming in 2000 and 2007, the Hawks also beating Port in an away Final in 2001.  

The past two seasons have seen the Hawks playing Port Adelaide at Football Park in Round 18, losing by 18 points in 2009 and by eight points last season. 

In all games, the Hawks trail Port 7-15, the lowest winning percentage against any opponent. 



On a more positive note, Hawthorn has won its last five games played on 6 May, a sequence which includes a five point win against Collingwood at Victoria Park (1972), coming from 56 points behind to beat Geelong at Princes Park in 1989 and the first ever game in Launceston against Adelaide in 2001.



After consecutive losses in Rounds 5 and 6, the 1961 Hawks needed a win when they faced Richmond at Glenferrie in Round 7.  Hawthorn kicked 4.6 before Richmond scored which, given the final margin was just 13 points, was the decisive part of the game.  The Sun reported that the “only reason for Hawthorn’s win was a brilliant first quarter when the home side greedily snatched the ball and hogged it with clever, blindingly fast play that left the Tigers lumbering yards behind”. 

From then on, the game was more of a struggle with the Tigers getting within seven points in the final quarter.  Most critics rated Garry Young (four goals), Ian Law and John Fisher as the Hawks’ best three, while others mentioned in the six best included Les Kaine, Graham Cooper, John McArthur and Charlie Abbott in his first game.



40 years ago, in Round 7 1971, the Hawks had the same fixture as ten years earlier.

This time the Glenferrie match of the day pitted Hawthorn (second) against Richmond (fourth).  However, it was effectively over as a contest by quarter time as the Hawks slammed on 6.5 to 0.0. Richmond did not manage its first goal until the 10-minute mark of the second quarter and, from that stage, had occasional passages of good play but never threatened to get back into to the game.

The Sporting Globe summed up the game as follows: “Hawthorn shocked Richmond with a devastating display of bone rattling power and ran away to a convincing 67 point win. The Tigers were bewildered by the Hawks’ vigour, fierce tackling and confident play.” 

Hudson booted four in the opening stanza on his way to 10 for the match, while Robert Day booted a career-high three.  This was not enough to make him best on the ground, that honour going to Peter Crimmins who put on a brilliant exhibition of roving.  Other good players were Angus, Stevenson, Day, Martello, Bussell, Scott and Parkin.  Hawthorn remained second on the ladder, half a game behind Collingwood.



25 years ago, in Round 7 1986, second placed Hawthorn beat surprise ladder leaders Sydney - 18.25.133 to 15.10.100. 

Having beaten the reigning Premier, Essendon, in Round 6, Hawthorn went in confidently to their Princes Park clash with the unbeaten Sydney.

The Hawks led by a point at quarter time; 21 at the half; 16 at three quarter time; before powering on the first six goals of the final term to extend the lead to 56 points at the 21 minute mark of the final term, before cruising home by 33 points.

Hawthorn had ten individual goal-kickers headed by Gary Buckenara and Dermott Brereton each with 3. Best players were Robert Dipierdomenico, Terry Wallace, Rod Lester-Smith, Chris Langford, Buckenara and Colin Robertson. 

Dipierdomenico secured the three Brownlow votes, which helped him win the Medal at the end of the season, for a game where he had 30 disposals and kicked two goals.



Five years later, the 1991 Hawks were again taking on the ladder-leader at Princes Park in Round 7.  This time the result was very different as unbeaten West Coast thrashed Hawthorn by 82 points - 8.14.62 to 21.18.144.  It was not a good day to make your debut which was the fate which befell prominent mature-age South Australian, Greg Whittlesea.  Two players who battled hard for the Hawks were Dean Anderson and Anthony Condon, who collected 33 and 32 disposals respectively.

The result meant the Hawks slumped to seventh on the ladder amidst a growing consensus that the team was ‘too old and too slow’ to mount another Premiership challenge.  Yet, just four and a half months later 16 of the 20 which played that day were members of Hawthorn’s ninth Premiership team.



Hawthorn’s Round 7 record is 39 wins, 46 losses and one draw.  The draw came in 1963, when that year’s eventual Grand Finalists, Hawthorn and Geelong, kicked 9.12.66 apiece. 

Hawthorn has only recorded one Round 7 win in the past eight seasons, that being a 65 point thrashing of Collingwood in 2008.  Prior to that the last Round 7 win was in 2002, a 52 point victory against Geelong. Last season, the Hawks lost to West Coast in Perth by eight points.  The 1970s brought much Round 7 happiness - the Hawks won eight consecutive Round 7 matches from 1971 to 1978.



Round 7 produced the highest individual goal tally by a Hawthorn player ever - 17 by Jason Dunstall against Richmond at Waverley in 1992.  No Hawthorn player has got more than six goals against Port Adelaide, that tally being achieved by three players - Aaron Lord (1997), Trent Croad (2000) and Lance Franklin (2008).