AFL Finals Western Bulldogs v Hawthorn: Hawks book their place in semi-final against Port Adelaide

After what transpired at the MCG on Friday night, Port Adelaide will be quaking in its boots. Can any team beat the Hawks at their blistering best?

Port Adelaide will be quaking in its boots.

The Hawthorn side that rolled over against the Power in round 10 has evolved into a made-for-finals monster which tore the Western Bulldogs apart in a blistering hour of football on Friday night.

Unexpectedly dry conditions at the MCG were meant to help the Bulldogs’ tall forwards fire, but instead it supercharged the Hawks’ quick handball game in an 37-point win that was the mirror image of the Dogs’ 2016 semi-final triumph.

After a nervy opening term in front of an enormous crowd, Hawthorn was first to ground balls, flicked the ball to faster outside runners and took advantage of a string of dubious umpiring calls.

Jack Ginnivan celebrates his final-quarter goal against the Bulldogs. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos

Led by first-year forwards Calsher Dear and Nick Watson, who booted 4.1 from set shots after coming into the game with a 7.16 record, the Hawks kicked nine of 11 goals in the second and third terms.

The crowd grew louder with each goal, and was at fever pitch by the time Thursday night’s London Tavern patron Jack Ginnivan dribbled home his first and mimed cracking open a tinnie after putting Hawthorn six goals in front midway through the last term.

Ed Richards started brightly to engineer Aaron Naughton’s opening goal, but he and the Bulldogs midfield looked flat-footed as Jai Newcombe (35 disposals), James Worpel and lucky inclusion Josh Ward worked into the game.

It might have been an off-night for the Bulldogs, but they will be desperately discontent with the end to their season after the away loss to Adelaide last month effectively cost them a double chance.

The Hawks played the Adelaide Oval well for a half against Collingwood in Gather Round, and another half against the Power a month later.

They pieced it all together at the venue in a July demolition against the Crows, and will hit a nervous Power at top speed.

Calsher Dear and Massimo D'Ambrosio during the Hawks’ win. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos

YOUNG AND OLD

It was Hawthorn’s first-year forwards and the most experienced player on the park who thrust the Hawks into pole position with a five-goal second quarter.

Calsher Dear made up for a missed set shot in the first term with a brilliant soccer goal after managing to keep the ball in play in the forward pocket, before Jack Gunston and Nick Watson followed with set shots from a near identical spot 40m out on a tight angle.

Dear, in the 16th game of his debut season after he arrived on Hawthorn’s list expecting to be a slow-burn, managed to run and fly at the ball without contact from a defender to take a strong grab and kick his second with 20 seconds before halftime.

Jai Newcombe was huge in the midfield. Picture: Michael Willson/AFL Photos

NO ONE WENT TO SICILY

The Hawthorn captain did as he pleased in the first half with 16 disposals and nine marks including three contested grabs.

Sicily was mostly opposed to Laitham Vandermeer and Lachlan McNeil, and peeled off both with ease to control the skies in the Bulldogs’ forward half.

Surprise Bulldogs inclusion James Harmes was clearly brought in for other purposes, but if coach Luke Beveridge was to persist with a mid-sized opponent for Sicily, surely the former Demon would’ve been a better option to try and negate his impact.

BATTERED BONT

He was the Bulldogs’ top clearance player in the first term, but Marcus Bontempelli went missing for two quarters and his side did not recover.

While the Hawks kicked nine goals to two and the contested ball count spiralled, the Dogs skipper managed only one kick and three handballs, spending prolonged periods on the bench.

It left his side lacking midfield punch, when it should have been putting Hawthorn’s on-ball brigade without Will Day to the sword.

Bontempelli kicked the first goal of the final term and was close to best afield in the final term, but how he was shut out of the game will come under the microscope in the Bulldogs’ post-mortem.

It wasn’t Jamarra Ugle-Hagan‘s night. Picture: Dylan Burns/AFL Photos

SCOREBOARD

BULLDOGS 4.1, 5.4, 6.5, 9.8 (62)

HAWKS 2.1, 7.3, 11.11, 14.15 (99)

BOURKE’S BEST Bulldogs: Lobb, Liberatore, Naughton, Treloar, Williams, Bontempelli. Hawks: Sicily, Dear, Newcombe, Meek, Macdonald, D’Ambrosio.

GOALS Bulldogs: Naughton 3, Darcy, Treloar, English, Williams, Bontempelli. Hawks: Watson 4, Dear 3, Macdonald 2, Meek, Gunston, Newcombe, Ginnivan, Maginness.

UMPIRES Broadbent, Fleer, Foot, Stevic

INJURIES Bulldogs: nil. Hawks: nil.

CROWD 97,828 at the MCG

Originally published as AFL Finals Western Bulldogs v Hawthorn: Hawks book their place in semi-final against Port Adelaide