When football fans think of the Hawthorn-Geelong rivalry from 1989, there is only one game that immediately springs to mind.

 

And deservedly so; the 1989 Grand Final was arguably the greatest decider ever played.

 

But if you think back a little further, a little deeper, you may dig up a faint memory of a clash between these sides from Round 6 that same year.

 

To say that Geelong burst out of the blocks in the opening half of this Round 6 clash would be an enormous understatement. By half-time, the Cats had booted 17.6 108 to lead the Hawks by 49 points.

 

Hawks fans at Princes Park at that point may have been contemplating departing for home, as the Cats appeared to be at their indomitable best.

 

But the Hawks bit back.

 

You shudder at the thought of what Allan Jeans might have served up his troops in the rooms of half-time, but whatever it was it worked!

 

The Hawks piled on seven third-quarter goals to their opponents’ two. It was game on, with the Cats leading by a much more palatable 19 points at three-quarter time.

 

But that third quarter burst was just an entrée to what the Hawks created in the final term.

 

Hawthorn booted 10 goals to round out the game, an incredible feat that outscored their entire first half.

 

They ran away victors thanks to a three-pronged effort from forwards Dermott Brereton (five goals), Gary Buckenara (five) and Jason Dunstall (four). Little-known Geelong forward Gavin Exell was the star for his side, booting nine goals.