This Saturday, Hawthorn will be attempting to win consecutive games against Melbourne for the first time since 2017-18.

The current seven-year gap without consecutive wins against the Demons is the longest since Hawthorn first recorded consecutive victories against Melbourne in 1951-52.

Until then, Hawthorn had secured just six non-consecutive wins in 26 seasons, although these included famous successes such as putting Melbourne out of the Finals in the final round of 1930 and winning in 1940, when Melbourne were both reigning and eventual Premiers.

Since the early 1950s, Hawthorn has had several significant winning sequences against Melbourne, highlighted by 22 consecutive wins from 1973 to 1984 (Hawthorn’s record against any club) and 13 from 2007 to 2016. Overall, the two clubs have played 172 times, with Hawthorn winning 88, Melbourne 83 and one draw.

Melbourne is the only club which Hawthorn has not played at both University of Tasmania Stadium or Docklands. The only other clubs the Hawks have not played at either venue are Collingwood at the former and GWS at the latter.

Collingwood’s score of 6.10.46 last Thursday night was its lowest against Hawthorn since recording 4.13.37 at Waverley in 1995. It was just the fourth time in 173 games that the Hawks have kept the Magpies to a score under 50, the lowest of all being 4.12.36 in 1961 and the other 5.13.43 in 1987.

Luke Breust’s return to the team last Thursday night lifted him to outright fourth on the Hawthorn all-time games list with 306. He now needs just one more game to join Sam Mitchell in equal third place on 307.

Jarman Impey’s next game will see him join Tony Woods on 142 games, in equal ninth most games played by individuals who joined Hawthorn from other VFL-AFL clubs. Shaun Burgoyne heads that list on 250 games, followed by Jack Gunston (247), Russell Greene (184), Joel Smith (163), Ben McEvoy (161), Josh Gibson (160), Brent Guerra (159) and Ian Bremner (158).

This Friday, 15 August, marks the 75^th birthday of one of the club’s greats, Team of the Century full-back, Kelvin Moore. Moore played exactly 300 games in his 15-season career from 1970 to 1984, was a member of the 1971, 1976 and 1978 Premiership teams, and won the Best and Fairest in 1979.

Jack Gunston has now kicked more goals so far in 2025 than he had in any previous home and away season, his previous highest being 52 in 2015. He has only twice kicked more than his current tally of 53 in a complete season (including Finals) reaching 58 in 2014 and 57 in 2015.

Hawthorn being on track to become the first team not to have a VFL-AFL debutant in a season has attracted some publicity.

If one includes all new players, including those from other VFL-AFL clubs, this season’s tally of two (Tom Barrass and Josh Battle) will equal 1977 (Richard Walter and Kevin Ablett – both League debutants) with the lowest number of new Hawthorn players in a season. There have been three other seasons, 2003, 2012 and 2015, with just two League debutants for Hawthorn, but those seasons all featured two other new Hawks with previous experience at other League clubs.

Lloyd Meek has become the 11th current Hawthorn player to receive a perfect 10 coaches' votes for the club. Nine had achieved it by the start of this season and have been joined by Jarman Impey in Round 14 and now Meek.

The first perfect 10 among the current list was achieved by Jack Gunston against Carlton in 2015, followed by James Sicily and Luke Breust (both 2018), James Worpel (2019), Jai Newcombe (2022), Mitch Lewis (2023), Dylan Moore, Will Day and Connor Macdonald (all 2024).

This Saturday, Hawthorn has the opportunity to achieve an attendance above 50,000 at every MCG game in a home and away season for the first time since 1964. It will be significantly different to 1964, as then there was just one MCG game compared to 10 in 2025. In Round 6 1964 a crowd of 53,798 saw the Hawks lose to Melbourne by five points.

Last Thursday night’s crowd of 68,515 against Collingwood was the sixth 60,000-plus attendance at a Hawthorn game this year, setting a new club record for a home and away season. The previous record of five had been recorded on six occasions (2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2015 and 2024).

Hawthorn has played 15 games in Round 23, for 12 wins (including the first 11), one draw (2021) and two losses (2022 and 2023). The Hawks had a bye in Round 23 1992 and there was no Round 23 in 2020. This is the seventh AFL season when Round 23 has been the penultimate round (1991-94, 2023-25). In all other cases, it was the final round.

10 years ago, in Round 23 2015, Hawthorn comfortably defeated Carlton at the MCG by 57 points – 17.11.113 to 8.8.56 – to finish third on the ladder. Jack Gunston and Jarryd Roughead both kicked four goals, while Sam Mitchell, Brad Hill and Josh Gibson received the Brownlow votes. These votes saw Mitchell finish third in the Brownlow, with the nine coaches' votes from this game giving him an eighth-placed finish in that award.

Peter Hudson holds the record for most goals by a Hawthorn player against Melbourne, kicking 16 in Round 5 1969, the second-highest figure in any game in Hawthorn history.

Jason Dunstall holds the Round 23 record with a tally of six, which included his 1000^th career goal, against Brisbane at the Gabba in 1994.