Nic Naitanui looked to be in all sorts of bother when his cheek bore the brunt of an accidental Lance Franklin elbow in a high-speed collision during the second quarter. The Eagles ruckman lay face down on the turf for some time before getting to his feet and departing the field in the hands of trainers. Fears of concussion were soon dispelled however, as Naitanui returned to the ground a short time later. The only long-term sufferer from the incident was West Coast's supply of tape, after much of it was wrapped around Naitanui's enormous head of hair to stem some bleeding.
2. Embley goes WWE
West Coast veteran Andrew Embley looks almost certain to be scrutinised by the Match Review Panel after a bizarre piece of behaviour during the second quarter that looked more suited to the wrestling ring. Tangling with opponent Ben Stratton behind play, the 31-year-old dropped both knees into the Hawthorn defender, who was lying on the ground. Stratton appeared completely unhurt in the incident, which could count in Embley's favour when MRP chairman Mark Fraser and friends examine the footage on Monday.
3. Battle of the big birds
Both Hawthorn and West Coast are known for their imposing tall forward lines, and the game started as a shootout between the big men from each team. The first 10 goals of the match were kicked by players 191cm or taller, with Jarryd Roughead (three), Jack Gunston and Franklin doing the damage for the Hawks, and Josh Kennedy (two), Dean Cox, Jack Darling and Naitanui all getting involved for the Eagles. The 183cm Luke Shuey broke the 'big birds' stranglehold when he snapped truly as the clock ticked towards quarter-time. By game's end, Roughead, Gunston and Kennedy each had five goals to their name.
4. Death of the clearance?
Having been thrashed 51-30 in clearances by Carlton last week, Hawthorn took another heavy beating against the Eagles, losing 20-9 out of the centre square (although it was a respectable 43-37 overall). As they did against the Blues though, the Hawks made up for their stoppage deficiency with ruthless punishment of opposition turnovers, slick end-to-end ball movement, and remarkable efficiency when going inside forward 50 (scoring 19 goals from just 49 inside 50s). Is the clearance less important than it used to be?
5. Ellis a late in
Midfielder Xavier Ellis was scheduled to continue his build-up from a calf injury in the VFL this weekend, but the injury-prone Hawk became a last-minute inclusion when Paul Puopolo experienced tightness during the warm-up. In his first senior game of 2013, Ellis started as the sub, coming on for a sore Grant Birchall (knee) during the third quarter. The 2008 premiership player finished with only five disposals but, more importantly, a clean bill of health as he seeks to gather some momentum in the lead-up to September.
