Reflecting on all the topical milestones and achievements, past and present, as we head into Round 14 of the 2018 season. This is 'Footy Flashbacks'....

10 years ago, in Round 14 2008, Hawthorn recorded a 57-point win against West Coast on a Friday night at the MCG – 18.18.126 to 9.15.69. Jarryd Roughead starred with six goals, while Trent Croad, Luke Hodge and Michael Osborne were among the best players.

30 years ago, in Round 14 1988, the Hawks defeated Footscray by 28 points at the Western Oval – 15.15.105 to 11.11.77 – with Paul Abbott, Gary Ayres and Robert Dipierdomenico featuring in the best. 

50 years ago, in Round 14 1968, Hawthorn kicked its highest score for 28 years, and its second highest ever, with a total of 24.8.152 against Footscray at Glenferrie. Peter Hudson kicked 12 goals, while Des Meagher accumulated 29 kicks and Peter Crimmins had 22.

It was just the third time that Hawthorn had reached 150, with the only other instances to that time being 25.11.161 (1940) and 21.25.151 (1963). At that time, Hawthorn’s opponents had reached 150 on 19 occasions but, like the Round 14 statistic at the start of the column, that record has now turned around with the Hawks having delivered twice as many 150-plus scores as their opponents.

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Hawthorn can square its Round 14 ledger at 46-46 with a win this week, a remarkable achievement given how poor the club’s results were in this round in its early years.

Hawthorn lost its first 12 Round 14 matches before a breakthrough win against Fitzroy in Round 14 1937. By 1954, after 30 League seasons, the Hawks had still only won four Round 14 games, compared to 26 defeats.

Things really began improving in John Kennedy’s era when Hawthorn won 13 of 14, including all ten in his second period as coach from 1967 to 1976.

The final impetus towards Round 14 parity has come from winning the last eight games in this round, with the Hawks beating the Western Bulldogs (2010), Essendon (2011), Carlton (2012), Brisbane Lions (2013), Collingwood (2014 and 2015), Gold Coast (2016) and Adelaide last season.

So going into Saturday’s game against Gold Coast, Hawthorn has played 91 matches in Round 14, recording 45 wins and 46 losses (and had the bye in both 1993 and 1994). A win would be yet another demonstration of the remarkable transformation of Hawthorn from easybeats to powerhouse.

Hawthorn kept an opponent scoreless in a quarter for the first time in four years, when the Crows failed to score in the third quarter last Saturday night. The most recent instance prior to that was in Round 7 2014 when St Kilda failed to score in the second quarter on the way to a 145-point Hawks’ victory at the MCG. 

It was just the third scoreless quarter by Adelaide against the Hawks, with remarkably the other two instances being in the same game in 1994. Playing at Football Park, the Hawks kept the hosts scoreless in the opening term while kicking 8.1 themselves. After an even second quarter, Adelaide then remained stuck on their half-time score of 3.3 for the whole third term. This time, Hawthorn booted 8.5 before cruising home in the last quarter for a 97-point win

Hawthorn’s current sequence of eight consecutive games without kicking a century is the longest in the Clarkson-era, surpassing three previous sequences of seven in 2005, 2006 and 2010. One needs to go back pre-Clarkson to the disastrous 2004 campaign when Hawthorn went 17 games without a century (from Round 2 to Round 18) to find a longer one. However, there is a big difference between the two cases, as while the Hawks won just two of those 17 2004 games, in the lower-scoring environment of 2018, the past eight games have produced a 4-4 record.

There has been a lot of talk in recent days of Richmond having the opportunity to equal Melbourne’s longstanding record of 17 consecutive wins at the MCG, so readers may have been wondering how close Hawthorn got to the record. The answer is 13 consecutive wins from Round 6 2014 through to Round 1 2015. 

The Hawks have also reeled off impressive streaks at other venues, including 19 at University of Tasmania Stadium (2012-16), 12 at Princes Park (1988-89), 11 at Waverley Park twice (1989-90 and 1991) and 10 at Docklands (2011-14).

Hawthorn won its first eight games against Gold Coast, which was a better starting record than against any other club. The run ended in 2017, when the Hawks lost to the Suns by 86 points at Carrara in Round 3 and then suffered another defeat by 16 points at the MCG in Round 12. This left the overall record between the clubs at 8-2 in Hawthorn’s favour.

Hawthorn has had a home game against Gold Coast every season since the Suns entered the competition in 2011, making 2018 the eighth consecutive season this has happened. In contrast, the Hawks have only had three away games against the Suns - in 2011, 2014 and 2017.

This will be the fifth meeting between the clubs at University of Tasmania Stadium, with the Hawks having won all four to date. The venue hosted the first-ever match between the two clubs in Round 13 2011. Gold Coast were competitive in the first half, but the Hawks kicked away to a 71-point win – 19.15.129 to 8.10.58. Two young Hawks, Luke Breust and Shane Savage, both kicked four goals, with Savage also accumulating 33 disposals. Best on ground was Sam Mitchell with 38 disposals, while Luke Hodge and Grant Birchall were also among the best.

The most recent clash between the clubs in Launceston was, in Round 14 2016. The Suns were in front by 15 points at quarter-time and by a point at the long interval, before a 6.10 to 2.7 second half produced a 26-point Hawthorn victory. James Sicliy kicked three goals, while similarly to 2011 Sam Mitchell starred with 35 disposals. 

The Round 14 individual goal-kicking record for Hawthorn is the 12 majors, kicked by Peter Hudson against Footscray at Glenferrie in 1968 (as above). The record for Hawthorn against Gold Coast is five, held jointly by Luke Breust (2011), Lance Franklin (2013) and Jack Gunston (2014 and 2017).