MELBOURNE felt the full brunt of the 'Tomahawk' on Saturday night, and it's becoming a brutal theme for Geelong's opponents this year.

Tom Hawkins, one of the game's premier key forwards for the past decade, boasts just one All Australian honour – in 2012, when he won the Cats' best and fairest – to go with his two flags.

That should change in 2018.

Written off in some quarters as a fading force, a noticeably leaner Hawkins is in rare form this year, even factoring in a slow start to the season.

He had only four goals to his name through as many rounds, then was a late withdrawal because of back spasms for Geelong's clash with Port Adelaide.

RE-SIGNINGS Cats trio extend deals

But no player has a longer run of multiple majors than Hawkins' 11 games since, a period he has booted a competition-high 37 goals – capped by seven of the best against the Demons.

Josh Kennedy (nine matches), Jarrad Waite (seven), Jeremy Cameron (six), Jack Riewoldt (five) and Jack Gunston, Jordan De Goey and Josh Jenkins (four) come in next.

Hawkins will match his personal best of 12 in a row if he kicks at least two goals against Brisbane at the Cattery on Saturday afternoon.

Hawkins claimed his eighth mark on Saturday – which doubled as his 30th birthday – in a match-winning sequence that ended with Zach Tuohy breaking Melbourne hearts with a goal after the siren.

It was the last act of his irrepressible final term, where he racked up eight disposals (six contested), three marks, four goals, one score assist and six score involvements.

Hawkins' 19.9 AFL Player Rating points for the quarter were the third-most since Champion Data began recording them six years ago.

So dominant was he that the Demons relieved Oscar McDonald of his duties mid-term and instead turned to Sam Frost.

It helped that Hawkins, who became a father for the first time last year, had silver service from Gary Ablett, Mitch Duncan and Tim Kelly.

"That's probably one of the most memorable games I've played in," Hawkins told geelongcats.com.au.

"To be down by 30 points in the last quarter and to find a way as a group to come back and win was outstanding."

Tom Hawkins led the Cats home in the final term with four of his seven goals. Picture: AFL Photos

Only Jesse Hogan's 16 fourth-quarter goals outdo Hawkins' and Jack Darling's 14 this season.

His repeat leads and high work-rate are becoming almost as potent as his ability to take contested marks inside 50 – a combination ensuring that Hawkins' aura is back.

The power forward's ability to take a mark from 29 per cent of his offensive one-on-one contests also ranks second among the top 50 targets.

Hawkins is on pace for career-high averages in disposals, contested possessions, goal and score assists, marks, uncontested marks and ball gets inside 50, too.

Worse might be to come, at least for his rivals, given life is supposed to begin at 30.

Sloppy Swans set unwanted record

Sydney's failure to kick a goal in the middle two quarters of its shock loss to Gold Coast on Saturday was something no Swans side had managed to do in nine years.

It last happened in round one, 2009 against St Kilda in strikingly similar circumstances, with Sydney leading the Saints by 27 points at quarter-time then not scoring a major in the next two terms.

The Swans had never failed to kick a goal in consecutive quarters at the SCG until the weekend and have now lost five matches there this season for the first time since 2002.

The pain keeps coming for Lewis

Hawthorn premiership star turned Demon Jordan Lewis can't escape Geelong no matter how hard he tries.

The Cats' two-point defeat of Lewis' Melbourne was incredibly the fifth time he has lost a game against them that involved a kick after the siren.

Geelong has been involved in 24 of the 93 matches decided that way in VFL/AFL history for a record of 16 wins, six losses and two draws.

You’re probably all sick of the after the siren kick stats but this one just might be my favourite. Jordan Lewis has now been involved in five games against the Cats where there has been a kick after the siren to decide a game, and lost every single one of them. #unlucky

— Kyle Pollard (@KylePollard) July 22, 2018

Mitchell mania

No active player wins the Sherrin like Hawthorn midfielder Tom Mitchell, who had his ninth game this year of at least 40 disposals on Sunday.

This isn't a new trend, either, given it was the 49th time from his 104 games that he amassed 30 or more possessions.

That equates to 47 per cent, ahead of record-setting former Magpie Dane Swan's 41 per cent in his 258-match career.

Statistics provided by Champion Data and the AFL's Cameron Sinclair