SUMMARY: Hawthorn has powered through its so-called 'start from hell', peeling off three straight wins of 40 or more points against good opposition. Alastair Clarkson's team is in superb touch, and when you can replace your injured key defender with an All Australian recruit who has been waiting patiently in the VFL, you know things are going well. North Melbourne finally got some reward for its decent early-season form last week, trouncing the Brisbane Lions. Brad Scott's men hadn't won a third quarter for the season, but blew away that emerging hoodoo with seven goals between half- and three-quarter-time. Majak Daw's brief but eventful debut left fans waiting keenly for more. ??
WHERE AND WHEN: MCG, Sunday April 28, 4.40pm
TV, RADIO AND BETTING: Click here for broadcast guide?
LAST FIVE TIMES ?
R10, 2012, Hawthorn 27.12 (174) d North Melbourne 9.5 (59) at Aurora Stadium
R20, 2011, Hawthorn 15.13 (103) d North Melbourne 13.8 (86) at Aurora Stadium
R5, 2010, North Melbourne 12.10 (82) d Hawthorn 10.10 (70) at Aurora Stadium
R15, 2009, Hawthorn 10.13 (73) d North Melbourne 9.10 (64) at Aurora Stadium
R3, 2009, Hawthorn 19.9 (123) d North Melbourne 10.9 (69) at Etihad Stadium
??THE SIX POINTS??
1. The last meeting between these teams was especially memorable for Hawthorn, with Lance Franklin booting a career-best 13 goals in the 115-point rout. Alongside the star forward's incredible performance, midfielder Sam Mitchell had 35 disposals and Grant Birchall 28. Birchall recently described the match as the best team performance he had been involved in.
2. Sunday's clash will feature the joint Coleman Medal leader, but it's not Franklin. North's Lindsay Thomas has been dynamic this season, booting 16 goals in the opening four rounds. He is level with Collingwood's Travis Cloke on the goalkicking table, with Franklin lurking one goal back on 15.??
3. Thomas isn't the only small forward in this game who is emerging as an early All Australian candidate. Hawk Luke Breust's goal tally sits at 11 for the season, to go with 17 tackles. The New South Welshman is extremely difficult to shut down – he has kicked at least two goals in 19 of his last 22 matches, going back to round eight last season. ??
4. North Melbourne ranks a lowly 15th in the AFL for tackles, but its skipper Andrew Swallow isn't to blame. The midfielder has laid 30 tackles so far this year, placing him fourth in the League behind only Scott Selwood (33), Tom Liberatore (32) and Jack Redden (31). Hawthorn ranks sixth for tackles, but its No.1 tackler, Sam Mitchell, is back in 27th in the AFL with 19.??
5. The Kangaroos were known as a handballing team in 2012, registering a low kick-to-handball ratio of just 1.24:1 across the season. That has changed this year, with Brad Scott's men now choosing to go by foot more often. Their kick-to-handball ratio has climbed to 1.62:1 across the opening four rounds, and they rank just 12th for average handballs per game.??
6. Hawthorn and North Melbourne haven't met at the MCG since 2008, when the Kangaroos won by 27 points. Head to head, the teams are dead level at the home of football, with 14 wins each and one draw from 29 games to date.
?The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the AFL or the clubs.
