1. How did he miss that?
Strange things happen to St Kilda forwards in Tasmania. Almost a year to the day after Saints big man Josh Bruce's astonishing miss from point-blank range in the corresponding fixture in Launceston, teammate Tim Membrey followed suit. The 23-year-old is an early frontrunner in the 'worst miss of the year' award, after he blew a golden opportunity to register his side's first goal of the match and reduce the margin to 13 points. Following Membrey's staggering blunder, Channel Seven commentator James Brayshaw said: "That's actually harder to miss than to kick", while Saints coach Alan Richardson threw his hands on his head in disbelief.
2. Smith’s stellar season rolls on
Isaac Smith continued his fine start to 2018, the Hawthorn vice-captain equalling his best haul of four goals (he previously kicked four against GWS in round 11, 2014). Smith also collected 24 disposals (16 kicks, eight handballs) at 91.7 per cent efficiency and was clearly the dominant player on the ground, despite Tom Mitchell amassing 45 possessions. Smith’s strong body of work in the first six rounds is one of the main reasons the Hawks find themselves at 4-2 and in fourth position on the ladder.
3. Saints more like sinners in front of goal
St Kilda’s woes at the forward end of the ground continued on Saturday night. Heading into their clash with Hawthorn, the Saints were the lowest-scoring team in the competition, and the 17th-ranked for accuracy, operating at just 39.8 per cent. St Kilda again failed to kick a decent score, the Saints failing to capitalise on their opportunities. Alan Richardson’s men kicked 7.12 from 42 inside 50s. Jack Billings, Jack Sinclair and Jade Gresham kicked 1.6 between them.
HAWKS LEAVE IT LATE: Full match coverage and stats
4. Mitchell continues to rack up the numbers
Tom Mitchell did what Tom Mitchell does. The Hawthorn ball-magnet collected 45 disposals (22 kicks, 23 handballs) – the fourth time this season he has had 40 or more possessions in a game. Mitchell was on fire early, amassing 27 disposals in the first half. His influence was quelled somewhat after the main break when the bigger-bodied Luke Dunstan went to him. Mitchell’s 45 touches is the most by a Hawk in Launceston (surpassing Sam Mitchell’s 44 in 2016 and Luke Hodge’s 44 in 2015), and he joins Tom Rockliff in 2015 and Gary Ablett in 2014 as players to pick up 45 touches in the city.
5. Young Hawks strut their stuff
Playing in just his fourth AFL game, 19-year-old Harry Morrison was among Hawthorn’s better players. The Hawks’ fifth-round round selection (No.74 overall) at the 2016 NAB AFL Draft, Morrison looked at home on the big stage, picking up 25 disposals (17 kicks, eight handballs) and kicked his first goal. Morrison also had five inside 50s. And James Worpel was more than handy on debut, the 19-year-old with 13 touches (six kicks, seven handballs) at 84.6 per cent efficiency. Affectionately known as 'The Worpedo', the Bannockburn product was drafted with pick No.45 in the 2017 NAB AFL Draft, Hawthorn’s first selection.
