How these off-Broadway battlers saved the Hollywood Hawks

1 week ago 3

Not many teams feel the full force of the Orange Tsunami and live to tell the tale. Hawthorn did – and it wasn’t their Hollywood Hawks who saved them, but their off-Broadway extras.

Those who consume their footy in bite-sized mini-match form will have come away from Hawthorn’s latest September success thinking Flash Harrys like Jack Ginnivan and Connor Macdonald were the heroes.

Both were pivotal to the Hawks’ dominance in the first two-thirds of the game but when they needed rescuing from the Giants’ surge it was one of the club’s less celebrated foot soldiers who answered the call.

Jack Ginnivan, Nick Watson and Connor Macdonald

Hardwick is a name that has become synonymous with finals – but not Blake Hardwick, a fine but no-frills player who only the more knowledgeable Hawks fans would recognise in his civvies on the street.

Hardwick’s highlight reel is for those who appreciate the blue-collar aspects of the game: the tackles, desperate lunges and stomach-churning moments where only players made of the right stuff can hold their nerve.

When Hawks coach Sam Mitchell reviews this game in the coming days, Hardwick’s last quarter should be replayed over and over again.

Eight of his 20 disposals came in this period when the Hawks needed to dig deep to fill their sandbags then reclaim ground once the Giants’ swell receded.

Hardwick made several telling contributions. There was the wholehearted tackle on Toby Bedford on the wing to quell another Giants forward thrust, a clutch intercept mark, a fingernail to stop a handball to an otherwise goalward-bound Giant and an enormous gather deep in defence from a centre square charge.

If not for acts like these, the Hawks would likely be spending this weekend pondering the one that got away.

Midway through the third quarter of an elimination final that had more plot twists than a Netflix crime drama, Hawks fans at Engie Stadium could have been forgiven for planning their next September interstate trek to Adelaide.

Ginnivan, the man who has come to personify the Hawks’ swagger, had just kicked two stirring goals in about 90 seconds and celebrated with the exuberance to match. The lead had blown out to 42 points.

Moments earlier, Ginnivan had goaded the Giants young forward Aaron Cadman, letting him know all about a brain explosion that resulted in the No.1 draft pick playing on and missing instead of taking a set shot from 30 metres out.

Finals often have to be won twice. This was no different.

Mitchell would doubtless have preferred to win without the roller-coaster ride, but he has rich material to work with.

If there were doubts after four losses on the road this year to top-eight sides, he now knows this group has the substance to match their style.

Few sides have the mettle to recover in enemy territory after giving up seven goals in just over 20 minutes, lose the lead, albeit for about 90 seconds, and fight back, kicking against a stiff breeze.

Mitchell would have learnt that Mabior Chol, a player not known for his resilience, can still seize his moments in a quiet game. And that Sam Butler, the last man picked, can step up when the pressure’s supreme to convert against the flow of play.

He also has renewed confidence in Jai Newcombe’s finals performances. Newcombe’s 19 possessions to half-time were instrumental to the Hawks’ thrilling first quarter.

When teammates needed leading, Newcombe was on the frontline. The Hawks were hemmed in their back half for much of the first 12 minutes until Newcombe capitalised on a 50-metre penalty and the Giants’ absent-mindedness to not stand the mark to drill the opening goal on the run.

For the second year in a row, the Hawks have a cut-throat final in Adelaide. Last year, they were heavy favourites against a fading Port Adelaide team which drew strength and meaning from an intemperate social media post from Ginnivan.

This time they meet a minor premier who will be questioning if they have the fortitude to recover from a turbulent few weeks – which has seen them rattled after the Izak Rankine saga and suffer stage fright in their first final in eight seasons – and avoid a straight-sets exit.

Victory would give them an MCG preliminary final, against Geelong – a scenario rarely afforded to a team that finishes eighth.

It might be time for someone to confiscate Ginnivan’s phone.

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