It happened in 1975, 1977 and 1978 with wins by 56, 106 and 29 points respectively. (There are more details on the 1978 game later in this week’s column)
1980 brought another Round 11 meeting, but with a less felicitous outcome – the Hawks lost by 18 points. The two clubs have continued to be drawn against each other fairly regularly in Round 11. The Hawks recorded victories in 1988 and 1997, while Essendon had a win in 1993.
Overall, Hawthorn has won 55 and lost 92 of the 147 matches against Essendon.
This Saturday night Hawthorn has the opportunity to win its sixth consecutive match against Essendon, which would equal its best ever sequence of wins recorded from 1987 to 1989.
Under Alistair Clarkson’s coaching the only loss to the Dons was in the first meeting in Round 3, 2005 when Essendon won by 2 points, after they were awarded a dubious goal that actually appeared to come off Jonathan Hay. The current winning run started in Round 20, 2005 with a 13 point win, continued with wins by 1 and 18 points in 2006, and by 35 points and 63 points last season.
Since the home and away season moved to a 22 round format in 1970, the Hawks have only reached half way with a 10-1 record on three occasions – 1971, 1975 and 1976. So this Saturday night the 2008 team has the opportunity to deliver the club’s best first half of a season for 32 years.
Hawthorn last played on the Monday of the Queen’s Birthday weekend back in 1995, beating Sydney at Waverley by 42 points, in a game best remembered for Shayne Stevenson kicking a goal with a broken leg.
Hawthorn’s very first public holiday appearance had come 69 years earlier in June 1926, where a trip to the Brunswick Street Oval produced an upset 15 point win over Fitzroy.
Lance Franklin is the first Hawthorn player to reach 50 goals by Round 10 since Jason Dunstall in 1992. However, it should also be pointed out that while Dunstall did not reach 50 until Round 11 in 1994, it was only his seventh game for the season, having missed three through injury and had the bye.
A fortnight ago Hawthorn was level with both Melbourne and the Western Bulldogs in the head-to-head records. Given the results of the past two games the Hawks are now one ahead of Melbourne and one behind the Bulldogs. Interestingly, Melbourne leads the Bulldogs 83-66 (with one draw) in their head-to-head record.
After 50 games against a Kevin Sheedy coached Essendon (Hawthorn won 24), the Hawks face the Dons with a different coach since losing to the Barry Davis coached Bombers at Windy Hill by 40 points in Round 22, 1980.
Round 11 is Hawthorn’s worst round, both historically and in recent seasons. Overall, the club has won just 30 of the 83 games it has played in the round (51 defeats and two draws). In the past ten seasons, Round 11 has produced just one win (by 4 points versus Adelaide at the MCG in 2003) and one draw (against the Bulldogs at Princes Park in 1999).
Leading individual goals records by Hawthorn players against Essendon are 12 by Jason Dunstall in 1992, 11 by Leigh Matthews in 1973 and 10 by Michael Moncrieff in 1972.
It is 12 years since a Hawthorn player kicked 10 goals in a game, but the last two bags of 9 have both been against Essendon, by Jason Dunstall in 1998 and Lance Franklin in 2007.
The record for most goals in Round 11 is held by Peter Hudson who appropriately kicked 11 against South Melbourne at Glenferrie in 1969.
Thirty years ago, Round 11 1978, saw Hawthorn 19.19.133 defeat Essendon 16.8.104 at Windy Hill. While the game was close throughout, the Hawks did lead at every change, drawing away in the final term.
Hawthorn centre half back, Peter Knights, provided one of the highlights of the game, with one newspaper saying “the duel between Van Der Haar and Knights was a classic encounter of two high-leaping, talented footballers”. Honours ended up with Knights, as Van Der Haar faded out of the game, after he missed a couple of shots for goal early in the last quarter.
Knights was included in the best players with John Hendrie (who shrugged off some recent indifferent form to boot 5 goals), Alle De Wolde, Leigh Matthews, Rodney Eade, Kelvin Moore and Don Scott. Michael Moncrieff also kicked 5 goals, taking his tally for the year to 48, placing him third in the League goal-kicking.
Essendon ended the game with five injured players and while few Hawthorn supporters were concerned that one of them was Ronnie Andrews, there was more sympathy for Bernie Jones, who was in his brief spell at Essendon, which made him one of what remains a list of just four Hawthorn players to leave, play at another League club and return, the others being Lew Gough, George Bennett and Trent Croad.
