This month marks the 50th anniversary of the first meeting of John Kennedy and Allan Jeans, the two men who, between them, have coached six of Hawthorn’s ten Premiership teams. 

In May 1961, Jeans, the first season Saints’ coach, took the honours over his second-year opponent, Kennedy, when St Kilda won a fiery Junction Oval clash against Hawthorn by 19 points, a result determined when the Hawks were outscored 7.8 to 2.0 in the third quarter as a five point lead became a 33 point deficit.

Over a span of years through to 1989, Kennedy and Jeans coached against other in 17 seasons and 33 games producing 12 wins for Kennedy, 20 for Jeans and one draw, Kennedy’s performance hindered by not being able to coach North Melbourne to victory against Hawthorn in his five years at Arden Street in the late 1980s. But, of course, Kennedy won when it mattered most, coaching Hawthorn to victory against St Kilda in the 1971 Grand Final.

Overall, the 33 Kennedy v Jeans games produced 18 Hawthorn wins, 14 losses and one draw.



Isaac Smith and Paul Puopolo’s debuts last Friday night mean that there are now eight players on the Club’s list who made their Hawthorn debuts at Football Park. 

They joined Cameron Bruce and David Hale, who had done so in Round 1 this year, plus Liam Shiels (2009), Brent Renouf (2008), Brad Sewell (2004) and Michael Osborne (2001).  

Other ex-Hawks to debut in Adelaide in the past decade were Campbell Brown and Tim Boyle.  Before Friday night, only Renouf had done so in a winning team.

Other current Hawks to have debuted in away games outside Victoria are Lance Franklin (SCG), Xavier Ellis (Gabba) and Max Bailey (Subiaco), while Grant Birchall and Brent Guerra made their Hawthorn debuts together outside Victoria, but at the second home venue, Aurora Stadium, in Round 1 2006.



Isaac Smith has become the seventh individual with the surname Smith to play for the Hawks. This takes that surname to outright third on the list of most common surnames in Hawthorn history. Sharing first place are Taylor and Williams with eight each.  Behind Smith, with six occurrences each, come two other names which were also represented in the team last Friday night - Murphy and Young.



Geelong achieved significant publicity on the weekend when it broke Richmond’s 70 year old record of 24 wins at a home ground. Hawthorn’s record sequence of wins in home games is 21 in 1987-89 (15 at Princes Park and 6 at Waverley). It should be noted that the sequences at the individual grounds were broken by losses in away games.

In terms of consecutive wins at particular venues in all types of games (home, away and finals), Hawthorn’s best sequence of wins is 12 at Princes Park in 1988-89. 

Hawthorn twice had sequences of 11 at Waverley Park (1989-90 and 1991-92) and nine at Glenferrie (1957-58 and 1970-71).  The best at the MCG  is seven (1991-93) and at York Park five (2006-07), while the Hawks also had some good sequences at ‘away’ venues - Western Oval eight (1972-79), Moorabbin seven (1980-89), Windy Hill six (1974-79) and Lake Oval six (three times).



Hawthorn holds a narrow 74 to 71 (with two draws) lead in the head-to-head battle against St Kilda. The Saints have won seven and drawn one of the last 10 meetings between the two clubs, although the Hawks won when it mattered most - a 54 point victory in 2008’s Preliminary Final, 18.10.118 to 9.10.64.

Hawthorn has been drawn to play St Kilda less than any other club in recent home and away seasons. 2007 is the only season since 2001 when they have met twice, Hawthorn winning at the MCG in Round 8 and St Kilda at Docklands in Round 16.

The majority of games against St Kilda in recent seasons have been away games at Docklands. Indeed, since Hawthorn began playing home games at the MCG in 2000, there have only been three matches at home to the Saints there, in 2001, 2005 and 2007, plus away games in 2000 and 2003 and the 2008 Preliminary Final.  The only other home game against St Kilda in the past decade was played at Aurora Stadium in 2009.



40 years ago, in Round 8 1971, Hawthorn thrashed North Melbourne at Waverley - 22.15.147 to 7.10.52.  Peter Hudson kicked sevem goals, while Alan Martello and Kevin Heath each kicked three. It was a milestone in the career of a man whose name is synonymous with the Grand Final at the end of the 1971 season, Bob Keddie - he played his 100th game.



25 years ago, in Round 8, the 1986 Hawks cruised to a 45 point win against Collingwood in front of 26,032 spectators at Waverley. Gary Buckenara, Robert Dipierdomenico and Jason Dunstall each booted 3 goals, while Buckenara’s 30 disposals also placed him second behind Terry Wallace (33) on that performance measure.  Chris Langford got three Brownlow votes, Dipierdomenico two and Greg Dear one. 

Sydney’s surprising loss at home to Richmond enabled Hawthorn to go to the top of the ladder for the first time in the 1986 season, a position the Hawks then held all the way through to Round 22, even through consecutive losses in Rounds 17 and 18.



20 years ago, in Round 8 1991, Hawthorn faced Carlton, both clubs going in with records of three wins, three losses and a bye in the first seven rounds.  The Hawks won by 44 points - 18.14 to 11.12 - with the star of the game being James Morrissey who kicked a career-high 6 goals and had 22 disposals.



Ten years ago, in Round 8 2001, Hawthorn won its eighth consecutive game, comfortably ahead of the previous record of 5 (1971-75-76-84). The new record was broken when the 2008 Hawks won the first nine games of what was to become a Premiership-winning season.



In 85 Round 8 matches, Hawthorn has won 42 and lost 43 (having had a bye 1992).  It has been one of the better rounds for the Hawks in recent times, with nine wins in the last 11 seasons, the only blemishes coming in 2003 and 2006. The past four years in Round 8 have seen the Hawks ground out a win in a low-scoring Saturday night MCG encounter with St Kilda in 2007, overcome a 32 point quarter time deficit to defeat Port Adelaide by 15 points in Launceston in 2008, beat Fremantle by 22 points at Subiaco in 2009 and score a nail-biting, and season-saving, three point victory against Richmond at the MCG last season.



The big names dominate the leading goal-kickers in Round 8. Peter Hudson booted 13 in this round in 1970 against South Melbourne, while Jason Dunstall kicked 10 in 1994 (against Brisbane). Hudson also holds the record for the highest number of goals by a Hawthorn player against St Kilda, kicking 12 at Glenferrie in Round 15 1971.