Match

Hawthorn vs Melbourne

Commentary / 13 May 2023

Pre Game

00:00
Among the Top 10 ruckmen in the AFL for total hitouts in 2023, Ned Reeves is one of two ruckmen to win over 50 per cent of the ruck contests he has attended (Sean Darcy leads the league with a 59 per cent win rate). With Reeves out, Lloyd Meek will have to do his best to replace his teammate in this regard.

Quarter 1

00:00
Q1 is now underway.
01:26
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Bayley Fritsch)
03:35
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Kade Chandler)
04:31
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Max Gawn)
05:33
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Rushed)
05:56
Six intercept possessions already for Melbourne, four of them intercept marks, has allowed the Demons to camp out in their front half for 75 per cent of time elapsed so far. They have five inside 50's as a result but just four behinds to show for it.
09:40
James Sicily was outmarked in a one-on-one contest for the first time in 24 attempts in 2023. He and Jack Payne from Brisbane were the only players in the top 50 for total defensive one-on-one's yet to surrender a mark in 2023.
09:48
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Christian Petracca)
10:47
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Charlie Spargo)
12:04
The first goal of the game goes to the Demons after recording the ninth consecutive inside 50 to start the game. Melbourne convert their inside 50's to goals at a rate of 28 per cent in 2023, the second-best conversion rate of any side this season.
13:56
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Harrison Petty)
14:12
Demons Interchange - Harrison Petty off due to an injury.
15:40
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Jack Viney)
15:57
Three goals all from forward half possession chains to start the match for Melbourne. The Demons have outscored their opponents by 10 points per game from this zone since Round 4, ranked fourth in the AFL during this five week period.
19:13
SCORE BEHIND - Hawks (Jacob Koschitzke)
23:40
Hawthorn's kicking efficiency is just 57 per cent in their defensive half. When they do get into their forward half, it drops even further to just 20 per cent. By comparison, the Demons forward half kicking efficiency is better than the Hawks defensive half efficiency (63 per cent).
24:19
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Max Gawn)
31:01
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Harrison Petty)
31:03
Hawthorn were able to win the pre-clearance groundball-get count 8-6 in the opening term, and centre bounce clearances 3-2. However after the stoppages had been cleared, Melbourne outhunted the Hawks, winning the groundball-get count 22-14 in post-clearance.

Quarter 2

00:00
Q2 is now underway.
01:32
SCORE BEHIND - Hawks (Rushed)
05:33
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Tom Sparrow)
06:59
Hawthorn have launched 27 possession chains from their defensive half, two of which have ended inside their forward 50 for one behind. By comparison, from 19 defensive half possession chains, Melbourne have entered their forward 50 from 10 of those chains and scored 1.3 (9).
10:09
Kysaiah Pickett (16 pressure acts) has twice as many pressure acts as any Hawthorn player.
10:13
SCORE GOAL - Hawks (Mitch Lewis)
10:44
Hawthorn get their first goal of the game through Mitch Lewis from their first forward half intercept possession chain that was able to get inside 50. Hawthorn average 20.6 points per game from forward half intercept possession chains in 2023, the second-lowest average of any side from this source.
15:14
SCORE BEHIND - Hawks (Sam Butler)
16:16
Hawks Interchange - James Blanck off due to an injury.
17:48
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Brodie Grundy)
18:19
Melbourne get a goal from their 10th mark inside 50 for the match. Hawthorn have taken one mark inside their forward 50 by comparison. Melbourne average 13 marks inside 50 per game in 2023, ranked fourth in the AFL.
21:42
Lachlan Bramble has replaced James Blanck (corked thigh) as the medical substitute.
22:44
Demons Interchange - Harrison Petty off due to an injury.
23:53
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Jacob van Rooyen)
28:22
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Kysaiah Pickett)
28:30
Hawthorn have been the marginally better team from stoppages in the second term, winning the clearance count 6-4 and scoring the only point from this source in the second term. The Hawks average 21 points per game from this source, the lowest average of any side in 2023.
28:47
Melbourne's 14 first-half intercept marks is their highest half-time tally in this category in 2023, surpassing their 13 intercept marks in the first half of their Round 3 clash against Sydney.

Quarter 3

00:00
Q3 is now underway.
00:46
SCORE GOAL - Hawks (Luke Breust)
01:02
Hawthorn open the second half exactly as they wanted, registering the first goal of the game from a centre bounce clearance. The Hawks have outscored their opponents by two points per game from this source in 2023, ranked fifth in the AFL this year.
03:23
SCORE GOAL - Hawks (Cam Mackenzie)
05:15
SCORE GOAL - Hawks (Josh Weddle)
05:22
Cameron Mackenzie and Josh Weddle get back-to-back goals, both of them kicking the first goal of their career. The first five minutes of this term feels like the first five minutes of the match, just with the roles reversed. The Hawks have won the first four clearances of the term and recorded the first five inside 50's of the quarter as a result.
07:17
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Clayton Oliver)
10:16
The opening 10 minutes of the third term has seen the Hawks record a pressure factor of 252 which is exceptionally high. Hawthorn have not recorded a single quarter pressure factor of 220 or more in any term this season.
10:57
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Ed Langdon)
12:26
The Demons bounce back with two consecutive goals to cool the Hawks momentum. The Demons have scored from 47 per cent of their forward half intercept possession chains, a 20 per cent higher conversion rate than their opponents from this source.
13:44
SCORE GOAL - Hawks (Lloyd Meek)
16:40
SCORE GOAL - Hawks (Sam Butler)
17:02
Hawthorn have equalled their highest scoring quarter of the year in the third term of today's match, matching the 30 points they scored in the second term against North Melbourne in Round 3.
19:38
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Kysaiah Pickett)
20:48
Christian Petracca has recorded four inside 50's this term, twice as many as any other player on the ground, including the inside 50 that assisted Kysaiah Pickett's goal. Among all players in the AFL, Petracca ranks fourth for goal assists with 12, behind three Geelong players.
23:34
SCORE BEHIND - Hawks (Rushed)
24:13
After conceding an intercept mark count of 5-14 in the first half, the Hawks have reversed this in the third term, leading this count 4-1.
24:38
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Bayley Fritsch)
25:47
SCORE BEHIND - Hawks (Mitch Lewis)
28:48
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Rushed)
30:58
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Rushed)
31:40
The Hawks scored three goals from forward 50 chains in the third term, and conceded just two behinds to Melbourne in their forward 50. The Hawks have been outscored by a goal per game from forward 50 score launches in 2023, the second-lowest margin of any side this year.

Quarter 4

00:00
Q4 is now underway.
00:44
SCORE GOAL - Hawks (Jai Newcombe)
01:13
The opening goal of the quarter again goes to the Hawthorn off a careless error by the Demons in their defensive half. That goal is just the second goal the Hawks have scored from general play in today's match. They have averaged 3.6 goals per game from this shot source since Round 4, the third-lowest average of any side.
02:53
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Rushed)
04:34
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Trent Rivers)
06:00
Melbourne answer back with their fifth goal of the game from general play. They average 5.6 goals per game from this shot source since Round 4, the fourth-highest average of any side.
07:44
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Bayley Fritsch)
11:29
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Charlie Spargo)
12:31
That goal to Charlie Spargo is the first goal that the Demons have launched from their defensive 50 in today's match. They have outscored their opponents in 2023 by an average of 6.4 points per game from defensive 50, ranked fourth in the AFL from this zone.
14:41
SCORE BEHIND - Hawks (Jai Newcombe)
20:10
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Alex Neal-Bullen)
22:34
Hawthorn have been able to prevent Melbourne from winning any of their 14 one-on-one contests in attack in today's match, while winning five of their own. The Demons have won 25 per cent of their attacking one-on-one's since Round 4, ranked sixth, compared to Hawthorn's league-low 17 per cent win rate in the same period.
23:53
Hawks Interchange - Changkuoth Jiath off due to an injury.
24:02
SCORE BEHIND - Demons (Christian Petracca)
25:19
SCORE GOAL - Demons (Bayley Fritsch)
27:13
Despite a strong surge in the third term, it was the ability of the Demons to take the ball away in the first half that has proved the deciding factor. 12.8 (80) to 3.4 (22) is Melbourne's largest margin of scores from intercept possessions in any match this year.
29:03
SCORE BEHIND - Hawks (Rushed)
29:22
Melbourne set a new season-best with 21 marks inside 50 from 66-41 inside 50's and scored 9.4 (58) from the shots at goal from these marks in a superb offensive display.