But in a reversal of what transpired when these sides met late last season at Adelaide Oval,Hawthorn surged back in the third quarter. Remarkably despite being shaded in the inside-50 count for the term (16-15) the Hawks kicked 8.0 to 1.4 to trim the margin back to within a goal with a quarter to play.
The ground opened up for the Hawks,who repeatedly swarmed from half-back and took full toll inside 50,with Jarman Impey,Blake Hardwick and Will Day all central to the comeback and Dylan Moore having the quarter of his life up forward.
Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarskon said after the match that his half-time message had been relatively simple.
“It was just ‘get our hands on the footy’ really. Essendon to their absolute credit were dominating possession of the footy and control of the ball in the first half. We were able to turn it around in the second half,it’s nearly as simple as that,to the credit of O’Meara and Mitchell,Shiels,our rucks in[Jon] Ceglar and[Ben] McEvoy,” Clarkson said.
“In the end,Essendon are stiff to lose,we’re lucky to win. Close games like that it’s just a flip of the coin.”
Rutten was circumspect in defeat.
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“Certainly a game of two halves,that’s for sure. I think the pleasing thing from our point of view and why our players are so disappointed is because we showed some really good footy in that first half,” Rutten said.
“I think our work rate[really dropped off]. We tried to be a bit cute,too precise,shallow entries and then Hawthorn were able to rebound the whole length of the ground a number of times,which is a good contrast to that second quarter.”
He was non-committal as to whether Jake Stringer would return next week against Port Adelaide after getting through more than a half in a VFL practice match on Saturday.
By golly,Ollie
Essendon debutant Nik Cox is one out of the box as a 200-centimetre wingman. The trouble at that height is that it’s a long way down to the ground. A clumsy attempt from the first-gamer to win a ground ball against 181-centimetre Hawk Ollie Hanrahan ended with the umpire taking Cox’s number for a high hit on Hanrahan. Fortunately,Hanrahan was OK but it was still a dangerous incident that will draw attention from match review officer Michael Christian. Hanrahan duly converted a set shot from the resultant 50-metre penalty.
McEvoy on the mic
New Hawthornskipper McEvoy has a dry,country sense of humour and it came through during the third quarter. Pinged by field umpire Rob Findlay for a throw,veteran ruckman McEvoy,protested,citing his profession to show he was hard done by. “I literally tap it for a living,” McEvoy said in an exchange that was caught on the Channel Seven broadcast.
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