CARLTON will host Hawthorn at Etihad Stadium this Sunday afternoon.
After breaking a 12-year hoodoo against the Hawks last season, take a look at what the Blues can expect against a familiar foe.
OVERVIEW
Ladder position: 10th
Won: 9
Lost: 7
Form: WWLWL
Average points for: 87
Average points against: 76
Leading goalkickers: Luke Breust (36), Jack Gunston (31), Jarryd Roughead (25), Isaac Smith (20)
AGE BREAKDOWN FOR SATURDAY (CARLTON IN BRACKETS)
Players aged 18-21: 5 (12)
Players aged 22-25: 5 (2)
Players aged 26-29: 10 (6)
Players aged 30+: 2 (2)
FORM
Hawthorn succumbed to a shock loss against Brisbane last week, going down by 33 points in Launceston.
While midfield duo Jaegar O’Meara (four goals) and Tom Mitchell (43 disposals) starred, the Hawks conceded 10 goals to three after half-time as the Lions ran the game out on top.
Prior to that, Hawthorn had been in good form, with big wins over Adelaide (56 points), Gold Coast (53 points) and the Western Bulldogs (63 points) since its bye.
INJURY WATCH
The Hawks were dealt a shock blow earlier in the week, with gun defender James Sicily ruled out for six weeks with a fractured scaphoid. It is a similar injury to the one which sidelined Carlton’s Jarrod Pickett earlier this season.
It was a second big blow in as many weeks for the Hawks, after losing Ben McEvoy a week prior following a fractured cheekbone.
Shaun Burgoyne will miss again with a hamstring injury, while Taylor Duryea and Tim O’Brien have been omitted.
James Worpel (35 disposals, one goal) earned a senior recall after strong form at VFL level, alongside experienced key position duo Kaiden Brand and Ryan Schoenmakers.
GAME STYLE
As was the foundation of their success between 2013 and 2015, the Hawks are a high-volume kicking team, ranked fifth in the competition for use by foot.
Both Carlton and Hawthorn rank in the bottom eight in the AFL for total disposals, yet rank in the top five for the kick-to-handball ratio (Carlton is third, Hawthorn fifth).
Hawthorn has the sixth-best ranked defence in terms of points conceded per game: it’s been this ability which has been central to its wins in 2018.
When the Hawks have been victorious, they’ve conceded just 60.8 points on average this year.
THE QUERY
With two losses in the last three weeks, Hawthorn will return to a venue which hasn’t been the happiest hunting ground in 2018.
From its three games at Etihad Stadium, the Hawks have only one win to show for it: they triumphed over the Western Bulldogs, but fell to North Melbourne and West Coast.
How the Hawthorn defence shapes up in the absence of James Sicily will also be a big talking point. He averaged 24 disposals and ranked sixth in the AFL for intercept possessions before his injury.
THE DANGERMEN
The battle between two of the AFL’s premier midfielders will take centre stage, as Mitchell takes on Patrick Cripps.
Ranked number one in the AFL for disposals and contested possessions, Mitchell will once again feature prominently in Brownlow Medal calculations come season’s end.
He’s been well-supported by O’Meara, who has put his previous injury troubles behind him to string together a consistent season. He has averaged over 26 disposals since returning from the bye, and kicked four goals last week against the Lions.
Luke Breust has been Hawthorn’s most prolific forward this season, with 36 goals from his 16 games. Breust has 11 goals in seven games against the Blues - his lowest against any opposition.
FINAL WORDS FROM THE OPPOSITION
Hawthorn senior coach Alistair Clarkson said his players would be on their toes ahead of Sunday’s game, with both sides looking for a response to their respective Round 17 performances.
"It's hard work, but they're on the right track,” Clarkson said about Carlton on Friday.
“They beat us in a close encounter at the end of last year at Etihad Stadium, so we’re going to have to play some good footy and they’ll be saying the same thing.
“Both Hawthorn and Carlton were disappointed with their output last week so both teams will be out there trying to play better footy.”
