The Hawks lost their fourth home match of the season in a crunch-game with Frankston on Sunday.

Box Hill desperately needed the win to bolster their finals chances, but couldn’t get off the mark with that elusive home win, eventually running out of legs in the pivotal last quarter.

The Dolphins sat 10^th coming into the clash while the Hawks were 11^th - only percentage separated the two teams.

Both sides had three wins and six losses and neither shied away in a gritty contest. The importance of the clash was certainly not lost on either side.

The Hawks swarmed around the ball early and looked like they meant business right from the get-go.

Mitch Thorp typified the trend kicking two first-quarter goals.

However, the Dolphins closed to within one point in the last few minutes of the quarter with back-to-back goals.

Frankston dropped men behind the ball in the second term quashing the Hawks forward movement.

As a result the Hawks played very stagnant football and where unable to hit up targets across the midfield and more importantly half forward.

Box Hill’s forward line led by Mitch Thorp was hanging by a thread as the Dolphins surged to a three-goal lead.

A brilliant piece of interplay from Zac Dawson and Sam Gibson looked to have broken the shackles but Gibson was unable to finish what would’ve surely been a valid contender for goal of the year.

What followed was the dagger; Frankston immediately surged to the other end of the field and opened up a 20-point lead just before half time with a long goal.

The Hawks were being seriously tested; they were put in a similar situation to those they have faltered in all year.

The Hawks faithful could sense the immense bearing the match had on the side’s season.

The intensity lifted noticeably in the third quarter as the Hawks were required to dig deep and show some ‘fighting spirit’. The game posed a perfect opportunity for the Hawks to destroy their frail image.

Box Hill coach Damien Christensen looked to re-jig early in the third, throwing the flexible Kris Shore into the forward line. It was a clear gamble, but Shore provided a solid target alleviating the pressure off Thorp somewhat. Unfortunately though, Shore spoiled his chances kicking 1.5 for the day.

The Hawks stepped up to the occasion in search of their first home win and looked very hungry.

Captain Kristan Height’s ranting and raving at the back symbolised the resolve that was running through the Hawk’s ranks.

Box Hill tackled incredibly hard and managed to win the majority of the crucial 50-50’s.

Thorp continued to dominate up forward, but wasn’t helped by the Hawks’ delivery. Gibson, Ball, Beau Muston and Travis Tuck carried the ball relentlessly from half back but lacked that final polish needed.

Often that pivotal last kick into the forward line missed its target and the Hawks were often left with a congested forward line in comparison to the Dolphin’s open forward 50 at the other end of the ground.

Right when the Hawks were working their hardest Frankston scored with a clever snap-goal 25 metres out to stretch the lead to 10 points.

That was the three-quarter-time margin, meaning the Hawks needed to be careful, with goals coming like gold in a relatively low-scoring contest.

The Hawks made things difficult for themselves conceding two early goals in the fourth term. The 20-point margin the Dolphins had orchestrated looked match winning.

Box Hill continued to fight, displaying some very skilful transition play but again failed to cap it off with six-pointers.

After the halfway mark of the final quarter the Hawks appeared to tire. The lack of midfield depth that has dogged them all season was evident yet again.

In contrast the Dolphins’ dearth of midfield contributors proved telling in a fast-paced final quarter as they were able to find loose runners between the arcs.

Muston gave the Hawks a small glimmer of hope at the 25-minute mark with a 50m goal on the run.

It wasn’t enough though to inspire the side as time soon became a precious commodity.

All credit to Frankston; they worked particularly hard and needed the win as much as the Hawks.

Indeed, you could tell how much Frankston wanted the win with their application throughout and the players’ escalation at the final siren.

It will be yet another bitter pill to swallow for the Hawks who put forward probably their most concerted effort of the season.

One positive was the sheer weight of contributors from the Hawks. There was scarcely a passenger on the day.

Matthew Ball was his consistent self in his last game before jetting off overseas.

Josh Thurgood marked very well amongst large packs and played the loose-man role to perfection. Kristan Height and Zac Dawson were also their usual reliable selves in defence.

Muston, Tuck and Gibson were all very good through the midfield and half back.

Thorp was one of the Hawks’ best with both Little and Shore leaving their own mark on the game.

The Hawks will have to turn it around and do it all again away to Werribee next Saturday.

Box Hill Hawks: 3.3 / 5.6 / 8.11 / 9.11 (65)

Frankston: 3.2 / 7.7 / 8.8 / 14.12 (96)

Goals: Thorp 3, Little 2, Shore, Dowler, Muston, Renouf

Best: Muston, Gibson, Ball, Thorp, Thurgood, Tuck,

The Box Hill Hawks were helped to a 23-point win at home to Frankston on Saturday; the same amount of behinds the away side kicked for the match.

Frankston led, but only in the scoring-shots department. The seven more Frankston had for the match was a staggering statistic that, if reversed, would’ve handed the Dolphins a comfortable victory.

It looked like luck was on the Hawks side nearing the end of the third term. Frankston continually peppered the goals for what seemed like an eternity without a goal. Shortly after, Box Hill managed the very long goal the Dolphins so desperately needed, right on the stroke of three-quarter time.

This extended the Hawks lead to 21 points.

Momentum obviously rested with the home side at the start of the last term however, Frankston kicked two goals within the first minute to put the heat firmly back on the Hawks.

The Hawks resolve was tested as they were rarely allowed to break free from their back half for the entire quarter.

In this period Frankston had a further three regulation shots on goal. Two of these resulted in behinds while the other one ended up out of bounds.

A quick fire three-goal period from the Hawks effectively killed off the contest in a matter of minutes.

The 23-point win, in the end, probably flattered the Hawks, but was built on the back of some solid performances from Luke Barker, Cameron Pedersen and David Marcius.

The Hawks sit mid table after the important win and meet Werribee away from home next Saturday.

Box Hill Hawks: 3.4 / 7.5 / 11.9 / 15.10 (100)

Frankston: 1.6 / 4.12 / 6.18 / 9.23 (77)

Goals: Barker 4, Pedersen 3, Hassett 2, Crook 2, Collins 2, Cook, Suckling

Best: Barker, Marcius, Neil, Pedersen, Crook, Robinson