Hawk feeding frenzy

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THIS really had the potential for disaster. You lose your main ruckman even before the contest against the competition's most daunting and damaging big man.

No wonder Hawthorn fans feared the worse when Ben McEvoy's late withdrawal with a calf injury thrust third-gamer Jonathon Ceglar to stare down Fremantle kingpin Aaron Sandilands across the centre circle.

Ceglar's call-up did provide an experienced campaigner as a back-up, big David Hale who celebrated his 200th game in style.

CLINICAL HAWKS SMASH DOCKERS

While Sandilands' work by hand and foot might look impressive on the stats sheet, it's what happened even when the 211 cms Docker won the tap.

Simply, the voracious Hawks midfielders fed off anything and everything. It mattered little to

Jordon Lewis, Cyril Rioli and Cameron Sutcliffe compete for a ground ball. Picture Wayne Ludbey.. Source: News Corp Australia

Jordan Lewis, Sam Mitchell, Liam Shiels, Brad Hill and improving Will Langford, who won first touch at those bounces and stoppages.

They smashed the Dockers for the contested ball with a lethal mix of hunger and skill that set up what became the Grand Final mismatch rather than the rematch.

No Nat Fyfe and Michael Barlow for the Dockers in those onball scraps spelt a whipping as Hawthorn hammered out a warning to the rest of the contenders on the night it put on show the 2013 premiership flag.

Jack Gunston snaps the ball across his body. Picture Wayne Ludbey. Source: News Corp Australia

Hawthorn started Hale face-to-face with Sandilands at the opening bounce, with Ceglar as another tall forward option.

And that Hawk combination of vast experience and youngful zest tick-tacked on the giant Docker to at least make him accountable at the bounces, throw-ins and stoppages.

It worked a dream almost from that first contest in which Sandilands seemed preoccupied with blocking Hale rather than laying one of those big paws on the ball.

David Hale, in game 200, spoils Hayden Ballantyne. Picture Wayne Ludbey. Source: News Corp Australia

It was as if Sandilands was expecting a full frontal Hawks physical assault on him from the start and he took his eye off the task of setting free his on-ballers.

The contest was only three minutes old when Roughead speared a pass to Hale who marked on the lead in front of Sandilands to goal. And six minutes later Jarryd Roughead took his turn to get on the scoresheet with a quick kick from a milling group of players. Two to the Hawk big men, none to big Sandy.

Rivals reunited. Picture Wayne Ludbey. Source: News Corp Australia

The first quarter hit-outs told the tale of Hawthorn's successful plan — Sandilands 11, Hale 5, Ceglar 3 and Jordan Lewis 2. Yes, the 185 cms Lewis had two hit-outs.

Clearly, the Hawthorn on-ballers were instructed to commit to being the third man up where possible. Not a new tactic, but an effective one to neutralise Docker takeaways.

A textbook Sandilands palm to release Stephen Hill at a centre bounce three minutes in the second term allowed Matthew Pavlich to outbody Kyle Cheney to mark and goal.

The rare centre clearance only illustrated the danger that lurked when Fremantle had possession. Instead, it was the Dockers' last scoreboard success of the pitiful and barren first half.

So comprehensively overwhelmed was last season's runner-up that it was damning to state that a Lyon-coached team could be labelled non-competitive, conceding the largest scoreboard tally under his watch.

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