On the one hand, Hawthorn has beaten the Bulldogs in all three Finals’ encounters between the two clubs, but on the other hand the Hawks have lost their last five MCG Finals.
Hawthorn beat Footscray by 43 points in the 1961 Grand Final, by 93 points in the 1985 Qualifying Final and by 10 points in the 1985 Preliminary Final.
Yet, since beating Geelong in the 1989 Grand Final, Hawthorn has lost MCG Finals to Melbourne (1990), Adelaide (1993), Kangaroos (2000), Essendon (2001) and Kangaroos (2007). All five defeats resulted in the Hawks being eliminated from the Finals. In ten Finals at other venues in the same period, the Hawks have won 7 out of 10 matches.
A total of 910,697 people (at an average of 41,395) attended Hawthorn’s 22 home and away games in 2008, a figure which smashed the previous record of 776,517 (average of 35,296) set in 2002.
The average at this season’s 11 home games (7 MCG and 4 Aurora Stadium) was 39,976 which was also a new record, breaking the old record of 34,863 set back in 1999, when all 11 home games were played at Waverley Park.
Lance Franklin’s century has extended Hawthorn’s lead at the top of the League’s hundred goal-kickers’ list. Hawthorn forwards have produced a total of 12 centuries, with Jason Dunstall 6 times and Peter Hudson 5 times being the previous centurions.
This means that the Hawks have over 20 per cent of the VFL-AFL total of 57. The next highest club is Collingwood with 10, followed by South Melbourne/Sydney with 7. Fevola’s failure means Carlton remain with just one, the worst of any Victorian club, except Melbourne, who have never produced a century goal-kicker.
2008 is also the 12th season when Hawthorn has had the leading goal-kicker in a VFL-AFL season. Franklin joins Peter Hudson (4 times - 1968, 1970, 1971 and 1977), John Peck (3 times - 1963, 1964 and 1965), Jason Dunstall (3 times - 1988, 1989 and 1992) and Leigh Matthews (once - 1975) as previous leading goal-kickers.
Hawthorn has made the Finals for the 27th time in its 84 VFL/AFL seasons. The strike rate is much better when one regards it as the 27th appearance in the 52 seasons from the first appearance in 1957.
The Hawks have played 62 Finals, winning 38 and losing 24, a commendable 61% success rate. Hawthorn won the first Final in 16 of its previous 26 Finals’ campaigns.
The one occasion Hawthorn began a Finals’ campaign against the Bulldogs was in the 1985 Qualifying Final. The Hawks led at every change by 26, 54 and 59 before winning 22.23.155 to 8.14.62.
The Hawks had ten individual goalkickers headed by Jason Dunstall 5, Michael Byrne 3, Dermott Brereton 3, Leigh Matthews 2, Robert Dipierdomenico 2, Terry Wallace 2 and Robert Handley 2. The best players were Terry Wallace, Rod Lester-Smith, Russell Greene, Russell Morris, Chris Mew and Robert Handley.
Hawthorn has finished in its highest position on the ladder on the home and away season since it also finished 2nd in 1991. This season’s percentage of 131.9 is also the best since 135.9 in 1991. In that most recent Premiership season, the Hawks won 16 home and away games, so the 17 wins this season is the most since the 1989 Hawks won 19.
2008 is the first season since 1993 when Hawthorn has recorded three scores of over 150 points, the scores coming in Round 1 (versus Melbourne), Round 7 (versus Collingwood) and in the final round against Carlton. The score of 24.15.159 last Saturday night was the second highest in the past 15 years, only exceeded by the 27.18.180 against Carlton last season.
Alistair Clarkson has squared his coaching ledger at 45-45, the first time he has reached parity since defeat in his opening game. His first 40 games produced just 10 wins, the last 50 games have produced 35 wins.
When Jarryd Roughead kicked 5 goals in the last quarter against Carlton, he became the second current Hawthorn player to kick five goals in a quarter, following Lance Franklin’s 5 goals in the second quarter against Essendon in Round 6 last season. The most goals any Hawk has kicked in a quarter are the 7 booted by Jason Dunstall against Geelong in the final term of Round 1, 1990.
This Friday night will be the first time that Hawthorn has played a Friday night Final in September. The club’s only two previous Friday night Finals were in August, 2000, the season brought forward to allow for the Sydney Olympics. Overall, the Hawks have played five Finals at night, winning two and losing three.
The Hawks trail the Bulldogs by one in the head-to-head battle between the two clubs 72-73 with 2 draws (in 1996 and 1999). The Bulldogs have won five of the past seven meetings, in each case the first match of the past five seasons. The two times they met for a second time in the season in Round 19, 2004 and in Round 21, 2007, the Hawks were victorious.
The highest individual goal tally kicked by a Hawthorn player against the Bulldogs is 14 by Jason Dunstall in Round 19, 1996 at Waverley. The best by a Hawthorn player in an early Final is the 8 by Michael Moncrieff in the 1978 Qualifying Final versus Collingwood.
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