HEAD TO HEAD: Hawthorn 57 wins, Essendon 95, no draws
LAST TIME: Hawthorn 14.18 (102) d Essendon 13.8 (86), round 13, 2010 at MCG
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A full replay will be available on afl.com.au 12 hours after the completion of the match
FORM: Hawthorn: WWWLW Essendon: WLLLL
SUMMARY
The Hawks and the Bombers were the 'it' teams of the early part of the season but many have jumped off them and on to the Carlton bandwagon as Collingwood and Geelong's main contenders.
The Hawks have won six of their past seven games but their list of unavailable players is a worry. To take both Jarryd Roughead and Lance Franklin out of the Hawthorn forward line is a huge blow to their game-plan.
Essendon's injury list is not quite as lengthy but its form is a concern, having lost its past four games after such a strong start to the season. The Bombers have struggled with how best to use their tall players while a midfield over-reliance on Jobe Watson is still a worry.
Disregarding the narrow loss to Geelong, Hawthorn is an in-form team. Doubts linger about how long they can maintain that form, but the Bombers at the moment aren't the team to bring it to an end.
QUESTION MARKS
How big a factor is the rivalry between these two teams? Make no mistake, these two clubs have a genuine dislike for one another. A mutual hatred that is perhaps unmatched in the AFL. All involved are professionals but we've seen emotions boil over plenty of times in the past few years with an impact on the result. Who's to say it can't happen again?
Who will kick the goals for the Hawks? No Roughy, no Buddy and their next highest goalscorer for the season is Shaun Burgoyne with 13. Teams can win games with an even spread of goals from their running players and that is how Hawthorn has to play this one. Cyril Rioli might cut loose if he is the main target but he is just as likely to be used up the ground. Maybe Luke Breust will relish the opportunity.
PREDICTION
Hawthorn by 33 points
TOYOTA AFL DREAM TEAM WATCH
The Hawks are the highest scoring Dream Team club and worth heavily investing in. Shane Savage scored an astronomical 164 points against Gold Coast last week and still has scope for improvement. At $299,500 he is worth a look for your midfield.
David Zaharakis has flattened out a bit for the Bombers but is worth an affordable $300,600 as either a forward or midfielder.
Follow the game live in the AFL Match Centre on afl.com.au and join the conversation on Twitter using #aflhawksdons
The views in this story are those of the author and not necessarily those of the clubs or the AFL
