HAWTHORN draftee Josh Ward appears to have sewn up a spot for round one after a superb performance in a 25-point loss to Richmond in the AAMI Community Series.

Taken with pick No.7 in last year's NAB AFL Draft, Ward was clearly his team's best player with 29 disposals, four marks and six clearances in a mature showing through the middle.

HAWKS v TIGERS Full match coverage and stats

Despite his efforts, the experienced Tigers were far too strong, running out 14.10 (94) to 9.15 (69) winners in the 'Healing for Hillcrest' tribute match at Devonport Oval.

Richmond made a blistering start to the game, booting seven goals in the opening term to lead by 33 points at the first change.

With Noah Balta and Jack Riewoldt (three goals each) in top gear, the Tigers extended that margin to 46 points at three-quarter time before the Hawks fought back with four goals to one in the final term to reduce the gap.

Balta, whose 2021 was derailed by an ankle injury, appears set to be pushed forward by Richmond this season from his usual spot in defence.

The 22-year-old slotted two goals in the opening quarter and finished with seven marks, two of them contested.

"His ability to compete, bring the ball to ground, bring our crumbers into play was really strong," Richmond assistant coach Adam Kingsley said.

"Obviously he's made an AFL name for himself as a backman.

"But we feel we can stretch an opposition with the three keys, Jack (Riewoldt), Tom (Lynch) and Noah. His aerial stuff is really important.

"I'd imagine he's locked in for a start (in round one) and I'm presuming that's as a forward. But we'll discuss that as the week ... wears on."

Richmond's Ivan Soldo sent a scare through his camp when the ruckman came off limping after twisting his ankle in a third-quarter contest.

He had it heavily strapped but returned to the field not long afterwards.

Teammate Dion Prestia spent time off the field with ice on his hand after a collision but also returned to the paddock, while Tigers co-captain Dylan Grimes appeared to cop a knock but also returned.

Hobart-born Jack Riewoldt finished with three goals in front of a sold-out crowd of 8412.

The match acted as a fundraiser for the families affected by December's Hillcrest Primary School jumping castle tragedy in which six students were killed and three others badly injured.

Fantasy watch
As coaches are on the hunt for the most profitable cash cows, maybe it's time to lock in Josh Ward (MID, $278,000). Hawthorn's first-round draftee averaged 108 Fantasy points in the NAB League and showed he could do it on the big stage, spending bulk midfield minutes in the absence of Tom Mitchell and Jaeger O'Meara. Ward scored 91 from 29 disposals, of which 19 were contested possessions. Richmond's top scorer was Jayden Short (DEF, $783,000) with 126. Is he a pre-season specialist? Last week he racked up 133 points in the practice match and in last year's AAMI Community Series game, the 26-year-old was the best performer for the entire series with 171. Hugo Ralphsmith (MID/FWD, $258,000) has a Fantasy-friendly role playing behind the ball. The defender took a game-high 10 marks to help him to 86 points, a lot higher than his breakeven of 31.

HAWTHORN         2.1       4.5       5.9       9.15 (69)
RICHMOND     7.4       10.5       13.7  14.10 (94)

GOALS
Hawthorn: Lewis 2, McEvoy, Gunston, Breust, Wingard, Phillips, MacDonald, Koschitzke
Richmond: Balta 3, Riewoldt 3, Lynch 2, Baker 2, Edwards 2, Castagna, Soldo

BEST
Hawthorn: Ward, Worpel, Phillips, Nash, Newcombe
Richmond: Short, Cotchin, Baker, Balta, Martin, McIntosh

INJURIES
Hawthorn: Nil
Richmond: Nil

Reports: Nil 

Crowd: 8,412 at Devonport Oval