Two of the great landmarks in Hawthorn’s 100-year VFL/ AFL history came against the Bulldogs – the first ever win in 1925 and the first premiership in 1961.

After suffering defeats in the opening four rounds, Hawthorn defeated Footscray by 16 points in Round 5 1925 and, 36 years later, won the club’s first premiership, defeating the Bulldogs by 43 points in the 1961 Grand Final.

Hawthorn has won its past three games against the Bulldogs, starting in Launceston in 2023, followed by two victories last season, in Round 8 at Docklands and in an Elimination Final at the MCG.

Hawthorn won eight consecutive games against the Bulldogs from 2010 to 2016, the winning sequence started and ended with thrilling three-point victories.

Overall, the Hawks hold an 87 -81 advantage in the head-to-head rivalry between the clubs in the VFL-AFL since joining the competition together in 1925, with two draws (in 1996 and 1999), a remarkably close statistic given the 13-2 premiership differential between the clubs.

The attendance of 83,706 last Friday night means that Hawthorn has had three 80,000-plus crowds this season, the most it has ever had in a home and away season, beating the previous record of two set last season. Seasons with single crowds above 80,000 were 1981, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014.

Hawthorn has already had seven attendances of 50,000-plus this season, equaling the record for most 50,000-plus crowds for a home and away season. This was set in 2012 and equalled in 2014, 2015 and 2017.

Hawthorn’s plays its third Thursday night game for the season this week which surpasses the most Thursday games in a season, the previous record being two in 2016, 2017 and 2020.

The Hawks’ first Thursday game was way back in 1963, when Anzac Day fell on a Thursday, while the first night game on a Thursday was against Adelaide at Adelaide Oval in Round 12 2015.

This round marks the 20th anniversary of the last time Hawthorn lost a game by 100 points or more. The 20-year period without losing by 100 points is the longest in club history, exceeding the years from 1950 to 1967, and 1979 to 1994.

Round 13 2005 saw the Hawks lose by 117 points to reigning Premiers, Port Adelaide. The Hawthorn team that night included no fewer than 12 future Premiership players for the club, while the Port team also contained two future Hawks Premiership stars, Stuart Dew and Shaun Burgoyne.

It was the 19th defeat by 100-plus points in the club’s VFL-AFL history, which at the time was balanced against 17 victories by similar margins. Since then, the Hawks have won a further 12 games by 100-plus margins to tip the balance to a positive 29-19.

The Hawks’ first 100-point win came against this week’s opponent, the Bulldogs, in Round 17 1971, with the most recent being against North Melbourne in Round 24 last season.

Hawthorn has played 98 matches in Round 13 for 46 wins, 51 defeats and one draw (in 1926), with two byes (2012 and 2017). The Hawks had an unbeaten run in Round 13 from 2010 to 2018. In recent years, Hawthorn’s Round 13 results include an upset 38-point win against Sydney at the SCG in 2021, a 25-point victory over Brisbane Lions at the MCG in 2023 and last season’s thrilling six-point win against GWS at University of Tasmania Stadium.

10 years ago, in Round 13 2015, Hawthorn recorded a 38-point MCG win against Essendon – 16.18.114 to 11.10.76. Paul Puopolo kicked four goals (three in the third quarter), while Jarryd Roughead achieved the double of 10 Coaches Votes and three Brownlow votes for an outstanding 29 disposal and one goal game. Josh Gibson missed a rare opportunity to kick his first Hawthorn goal in his 111th game for the club, eventually doing so the following season.

30 years ago, in Round 13 1995, Hawthorn defeated Fitzroy by 99 points at Princes Park - 21.25.151 to 7.10.52. Simon Minton-Connell kicked eight goals and Paul Hudson five, neither of which was enough to earn Brownlow votes, these going to Shane Crawford, Darren Jarman and Andy Collins. One of the Fitzroy opposition was future Hawk John Barker.

In that 1995 game, the Hawks’ half-time score was 7.13. In an odd quirk that had also been the half-time score exactly ten years earlier in Round 13 1985. Whereas, in 1995, the accuracy improved slightly after half-time, in 1985 it deteriorated further, producing 0.10 in the third term and a final score of 11.31.97. Luckily, it was still good enough to beat Melbourne’s 12.9.81 by 16 points. The main culprit was Michael Byrne who kicked 0.8. Richard Loveridge got the three Brownlow votes for his 29 disposals and two goals.

50 years ago, in Round 13 1975, in another game riddled with inaccuracy, ladder-leader Hawthorn defeated fifth-placed St Kilda by 24 points – 11.19.85 to 7.19.61. A key offender was Leigh Matthews kicking 0.7, and thus failing to extend his lead at the top of the League goalkicking. However, his general play still saw him rated prominently among the best players, along with Kelvin Moore, Alan Martello, Peter Welsh and Barry Rowlings.

100 years ago, in Round 13 1925, Hawthorn recorded its second-ever win, and its first against an existing VFL team, defeating St Kilda by three points – 8.11.59 to 8.8.56. Bert Hyde, in just his second game, kicked three goals, as the Mayblooms came from seven points down at the final change to delight the 10,000-strong Glenferrie Oval crowd.

Peter Hudson and Jason Dunstall share the Round 13 goal-kicking record, with Hudson booting nine against Fitzroy in 1971, which Dunstall equalled against Geelong in 1988. They are followed by bags of eight from Peter Knights (1972), Mike Moncrieff (1980) and Simon Minton-Connell (1995).

Dunstall also holds the Hawthorn individual goal-kicking record against the Bulldogs with 14 goals at Waverley in Round 19 1996. This contributed to his overall tally of 116 goals versus the Bulldogs, his most against any opponent.