HAWTHORN'S women are giant killers, ending the longest winning streak in AFLW, AFL and VFL history.

Applying relentless pressure, the Hawks ground down two-time defending AFLW premier North Melbourne on Friday night for a seven-point triumph in Cairns, 4.8 (32) to 3.7 (25).

HAWKS V ROOS Full match details and stats

The Kangaroos' previous loss was the 2023 Grand Final. They opened 2024 with a win and a draw, before starting their historic 32-game winning streak.

It is a great start to the weekend for Hawthorn, ahead of Saturday's AFL preliminary final against Brisbane at the MCG. The Hawks men will also start underdogs against the two-time defending premier.

This is Hawthorn's greatest AFLW win since it joined the league in 2022, the victory taking it to a 4-2 win-loss record for the season.

Hawthorn lost captain Emily Bates to an ACL rupture last weekend, but fellow onballer Jasmine Fleming stepped up with surely the best match of her 48-game career.

Fleming was Hawthorn's firestarter in the second half, quelling North captain Jasmine Garner and leading the charge as it overcame a 10-point deficit at the main break.

"That was just such a hard fourth quarter. The pressure was on that whole game with North, and really at the end we had to lock down," Fleming told Fox Footy after the game.

"I'm so proud of the group, that was amazing.

"I hope we made her (Bates) proud, I wish she was out there. It's bloody tough, what she's going through, but to get the win for her is pretty special.''

Mikayla Williamson kicked the only goal of the third term in blustery and humid conditions, bringing Hawthorn to within three points at the last break.

Four behinds put Hawthorn ahead for the first time since the opening term, before Cairns native Jac Dupuy kicked a goal to give it a seven-point buffer.

Blaithin Bogue's goal brought it back to a one-point game, before Hawks ruck Lucy Wales snapped superbly inside the last two minutes for the sealer.

"I kicked my first goal a couple of weeks ago, so to think that went through, it's pretty unreal," Wales said.

North was clearly gettable, coming off a five-day break and playing in Cairns for the first time. It had held off Carlton last Sunday by 10 points with the lowest score in its streak.

The Roos also had lost Libby Birch and Kate Shierlaw to injury and Emma Kearney was managed - all frontline North players.

Dupuy set the agenda in the first quarter with a brutal tackle on Ruby Tripodi that left the North player with a bandaged head for the rest of the game.

Hawthorn forward Poppy Stockwell, who kicked its opening goal, also returned to the field after needing treatment for a cut near her eye.

Fleming racked up 25 disposals and a team-high four clearances, while Tamara Smith was also outstanding in defence for the Hawks.

North onballer Eilish Sheerin had a game-high 30 possessions, and Garner ended with 29, after amassing 21 in the first half.

Two team statistics were telling. 

North led tackles at half-time 35-29 and inside-50s 19-10. 

By the end of the game, Hawthorn had squared tackles at 64-64 and won the inside-50s 34-30. 

North also kicked its lowest score on Friday night since 2023.

A whale of a goal
Hawthorn ruck Lucy Wales has been having a sensational season but it's unlikely that when it finishes any moment will stand out above the goal she snapped in the fourth quarter. With the margin at one point and the clock under two minutes there was a sense the Roos were about to snatch the win from under the Hawks' noses, but Wales thought differently, forcing her exhausted body into yet another pack and kicking truly to seal the result.

Hawks salute as undercard underdogs
The AFLW has been experimenting with double-headers this year, but Friday night’s entertainment was a twin treat of an unusual kind. The Kangaroos, with back-to-back flags and 32 consecutive wins on the board, found themselves as the away team in a curtain raiser to the AFL Cairns Women's Grand Final between North Cairns and Centrals. The Roos weren't even the only 'North' on the bill - no wonder they were flustered!

HAWTHORN                1.0   1.2   2.4   4.8 (32)
NORTH MELBOURNE    1.4   2.6   2.7   3.7 (25)

GOALS
Hawthorn: Williamson, Wales, Stockwell, Dupuy
North Melbourne: Riddell, Eddey, Bogue

BEST
Hawthorn: Fleming, Wales, Williamson, McDonagh, Richardson
North Melbourne: Garner, Sheerin, Riddell, Rennie

INJURIES
Hawthorn: Nil
North Melbourne: Nil

Crowd: TBC at Cazaly's Stadium