How much was riding on this game?
The Hawks were in a strange spot – win and the dream of a top four finish remains alive, but lose… and the reality of fighting for a place in the bottom half of the eight could slap them in the face with a wet fish.
Meanwhile, the Suns were on the end of three-straight losses, and the knives are out for them. With a tough run to come, they needed this win, and needed it badly.
Alas, there was only ever going to be one winner, and the class of the Hawks, dominating out of the middle, was far too much for the Suns to contend with.
In a game of wild momentum shifts, it was Hawthorn who were able to take the best the Suns were able to throw at them, and put several on their chin coming back at them.
The centre bounce domination told a story, with the Hawks dominating the Suns to the tune of +8 for the contest. Jai Newcome had eight himself, whilst the entire Suns team managed 12.
Nick Watson provided the steak to go with plenty of sizzle, Noah Anderson found the footy for fun, and Josh Ward did a fantastic job opposed to Matt Rowell.
Heaps to get through in this one – time for The Mongrel’s Big Statements.
This is just the introduction – the remainder of this article is for our members. They support me, and I provide for them. It’s a good deal.
Oh… a Mongrel paywall… the worst of all paywalls. We’re all in on the 2026 AFL season. Player articles, stats, awards, game coverage. Dump the mainstream lip service and dive into articles like this – you will never look back. If you don’t want to, that’s fine. I consider it your loss as we get into the grind of the season, and you’re stuck with the stuff that’s frustrated you for years.
