Insider: Sharpshooting Hawks rarely miss a chance to hurt the opposition

GIVE a Hawk an opportunity in front of goal and the chances are he will make you pay the ultimate price.

GIVE a Hawk an opportunity in front of goal and the chances are he will make you pay the ultimate price.

Hawthorn — long renowned for its elite field kicking — is this season shooting the lights out in front of the sticks.

Its standout 67.3 per cent scoring accuracy after round nine is an astounding five per cent better than any rival.

At their current rate, the Hawks will etch their name in the history books as having the best scoring accuracy percentage in VFL-AFL history.

That record sits with St Kilda, which kicked at 66.9 per cent accuracy in 2004.

The best accuracy percentage at the end of a season prior to Champion Data recording statistics in 1999 is 59 per cent by North Melbourne in 1993 and Sydney in 1998.

Hawthorn, which plays top-of-the-table Port Adelaide at Adelaide Oval tomorrow night, has kicked 148 goals from 220 scoring shots this season.

The Western Bulldogs — with 100 goals from 160 shots — rank second at 62.5 per cent scoring accuracy.

The Power sits third at 61.3 per cent, having nailed 133 of its 217 attempts.

To put last year’s premiers’ outstanding goalkicking into perspective, Collingwood — which ranks dead last for accuracy — is shooting at just 51.1 per cent.

Hawthorn has 16 players who have booted three goals or more.

All have kicked at 50 per cent accuracy or better.

Ruckman Ben McEvoy (3.0) has a 100 per cent strike rate, small forward sharpshooter Luke Breust has kicked a sensational 24.4 at 85.7 per cent accuracy and regular defender Ryan Schoenmakers (4.1) is shooting at 80 per cent.

Shaun Burgoyne and Sam Mitchell (75 per cent), Cyril Rioli (72.2), Matt Suckling and Isaac Smith (70) are other Hawks to have made the most of their scoring opportunities.

Key forwards Jarryd Roughead (69 per cent) and Jack Gunston (63.3) also rate highly in the accuracy stakes.

While Port won’t have to worry about key forward Roughead (suspension) and explosive small goalsneak Rioli (hamstring) tomorrow night, full back Alipate Carlile said the Power is fully aware of the threat Hawthorn poses with its kicking.

“We just have to do our best to limit their scoring opportunities,’’ he said.

“They are just such elite kicks at goal and around the ground that if we give them too many chances they are capable of slicing you to pieces.

“They’re the best in the business at using the ball and making teams pay when they get hold of it, so they will definitely test us defensively.’’

While the Hawks are deadeye dicks, they also rank in the elite category for general field kicking.

Ten players have positive ratios in Champion Data’s expected hit rate for kicking, which is based on the degree of difficulty of kicks in each AFL game.

They are Rioli (+8.7), fellow excitement machine Brad Hill (+8.0), ruckman/forward David Hale (+7.4), half-back Suckling (+6.7), Breust (+6.5), defenders Kyle Cheney (+2.3), Luke Hodge and Grant Birchall (+1.9), Gunston (+1.0) and last year’s club champion Josh Gibson (+0.9).