HAWTHORN'S mid-season resurgence has continued, with the Hawks thrashing Carlton by 50 points at the MCG on Friday night.

The Hawks were never headed in the 18.12 (120) to 10.10 (70) win, which was their seventh victory in their last eight matches.

The win may have come at a cost, with Lance Franklin coming from the ground in the last quarter with an apparent left hamstring injury.

Franklin was one of Hawthorn's best on the night, gathering 23 touches and booting four goals, falling two short of 500 for his career.

Whatever the extent of Franklin's hamstring problem, it would be unlikely he would be risked for next week's game against Greater Western Sydney.

Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson said the initial diagnosis was that Franklin had only slightly strained his hamstring.

"I think he's just tightened up in the hamstring, so we'll assess that throughout the course of the week," Clarkson said.
 
"If he's hurt it, then we'll give him a rest for whatever it needs to get it right, but we'll get it scanned early in the week and see how he goes.

Michael Jamison, Franklin's direct opponent for much of the night, also finished the game sidelined after injuring his right shoulder.

Jamison will undergo scans on Saturday to determine the severity of the injury.

The Hawks' form is a stark contrast to a Carlton team that has lost six of its last seven matches and finds itself stranded outside the top eight, locked on six wins with four other teams.

Hawthorn's free-flowing, risk-taking approach blew Carlton away with seven first-quarter goals, and it never looked back from there.

The Blues were unable to hinder any Hawthorn attack as the Hawks frequently kicked over the defensive zone and kicked multiple goals through players who ran back with the flight into open space.

It wasn't just the Buddy show in the Hawthorn forward 50, with a solid supporting cast led by Jarryd Roughead, Luke Breust and Jack Gunston, who played his best game since crossing from Adelaide at the end of last year.

David Hale set the tone in the ruck and often outbodied Matthew Kreuzer, who seemed to lack intensity at times.

Sam Mitchell gave his usual workmanlike effort in the middle, finishing with 32 touches to win the David Parkin Medal for best on ground, while Jordan Lewis didn't look to be too troubled in his first game back from suspension, gathering 24 possessions.

All eyes were on Chris Judd after his form was questioned possibly for the first time in his career following Carlton's loss to West Coast. He was confronted with Brad Sewell for much of the game, and while no clear winner emerged, Judd showed enough dash and run to quieten the critics with 29 possessions and a goal.

Unusually for such an emphatic Hawthorn win, there were few if any highlights from Cyril Rioli. Rioli spent more time in the midfield than usual and finished with his fourth consecutive goalless game against the Blues thanks largely to a heavy tag from Aaron Joseph.

If anything, the final margin flattered Carlton, which looked to have lacked confidence and dash. Mitch Robinson aside, there were few Carlton players willing to take the game on and physically impose themselves on the contest.

Carlton coach Brett Ratten said that despite the disappointment of such a heavy loss, he could see some indications the Blues were nearing a return to form.

"It might take another week, it might take two weeks," Ratten said after the game.

"I don't know when it's coming, but there has been signs to show in the last three weeks that we can do some good things in games, but our inconsistency in the games is really hurting us."

CARLTON        3.2     6.2      7.6        10.10 (70)
HAWTHORN    7.4    10.7    16.10     18.12 (120)          
 
GOALS
Carlton: Armfield 2, Betts 2, Ellard, Hampson, Judd, Robinson, Simpson, Yarran
Hawthorn: Franklin 4, Roughead 3, Gunston 3, Breust 2, Hale, Lewis, Mitchell, Puopolo, Savage, Suckling
 
BEST
Carlton: Carrazzo, Robinson, Joseph, Judd, Scotland
Hawthorn: Franklin, Mitchell, Lewis, Burgoyne, Hale, Roughead
 
INJURIES
Carlton: Jamison (right shoulder)
Hawthorn: Franklin (left hamstring)
 
SUBSTITUTES
Carlton: Jeff Garlett replaced Josh Bootsma at half-time
Hawthorn: Isaac Smith replaced Jack Gunston at three-quarter-time
 
Reports: Brent Guerra (Hawthorn) for high contact against Eddie Betts (Carlton) in the first quarter.
 
Umpires: Stevic, Schmitt, Meredith    
 
Official crowd: 65,047 at the MCG

The views in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of the club.