HAWTHORN is not exactly running around this week saying 'Look out Collingwood, Buddy is back'. But when Luke Hodge talks about the "challenge" of playing the Pies and subtly mentions the return of Lance Franklin, he is indeed saying something.

"Yeah it is [a tough game]. Collingwood has been outstanding the last 18 months. We've got Franklin back this week but it's going to be a big challenge for us," Hodge said on Friday.

It is easy to see why Hawthorn is viewed as a serious threat to Collingwood's charge towards back-to-back premierships, despite the Hawks' injury list mounting each week.

Hawthorn has won five of the clubs' past six clashes since 2007 by an average of 35 points. Collingwood's only victory in this period was last year in round four, when it won by 64 points.

And it has been two players, Franklin and Sam Mitchell, who have been central to the Hawks' recent victories over the Magpies.

In the five wins, Franklin has kicked 29 goals at an average of 5.8 a game. This includes hauls of six, five, eight, six and four goals. He missed the loss.

The star forward kicks more goals (an average of 4.7 a game) against Collingwood than any other team in the competition.

In Mitchell's 186-game career, he averages 25 possessions a game. In the Hawks' past six encounters against Collingwood, he has been even more prolific, with an average of 30 disposals.

The pair has polled 17 of a possible 30 Brownlow Medal votes in those five Hawthorn wins. It has been an incredible two-man show.

Unsurprisingly, Collingwood coach Mick Malthouse was talking up the Hawks in the lead up to the game.

Malthouse claimed Hawthorn's kicking was collectively "the equal of any side" he had seen.

But Hodge dismissed this as mind games.

"I think it's the old tactic of build someone up and then knock them down," he said.

"Our guys aren't silly enough to fall for that. We could do the opposite and say how good is Travis Cloke's form. He's been in outstanding form and is probably the best player in the competition.

"You don't really read stuff like that. Teams have been kicking the football for a long time.

"We'll go and play our game style, they'll play theirs and hopefully we get over the line at the end of the game.

"Collingwood's last 18 months has been outstanding and we've been a bit inconsistent so we'll just go out there and focus on what we can do and what is the best strategy to beat them.

"We'd like to think we've got the game plan to beat every team otherwise it wouldn't be a very successful game plan.

"We'll go out there and do whatever we can to beat them, and I'd say it's going to be a pretty physical and entertaining clash."

Callum Twomey writes for the AFL Record