1. Hardwick joins the club
Handed his debut following the late withdrawal of Cyril Rioli from Hawthorn’s line-up, 19-year-old forward Blake Hardwick soon found the chance to join a noteworthy club by kicking a goal with his first kick in the AFL. Having marked on the end of a smart lead seconds before the quarter-time siren, Hardwick lined up from the right forward pocket. Unfortunately for the young Hawk it wasn't to be as he pulled the shot across the face, though he may have wound up in an even smaller club as his first kick spiralled out on the full in the opposite pocket. The youngster finished with eight disposals, three tackles and a behind.

2. Hawks struggle to get going
In their 15 years as tenants at Aurora Stadium, the Hawks must rarely have played a more lacklustre quarter of football than the second term against Carlton on Saturday. With a freshening breeze in their favour, the Hawks were unable to find any kind of fluency going forward and, save for Carlton’s own inaccuracy in front of goal at the other end, should have gone into the long break in arrears. As it was, they held a one-goal lead but could scarcely have been satisfied heading to the sheds having added just three behinds to Carlton’s 1.4 for the quarter.

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3. Blues bring the pressure
While Hawthorn was off the boil, the Carlton effort and application around the contest was evident and was enough to earn a rousing cheer from the Blues faithful as the players left the field at half-time. At the main break the Blues led counts for contested possession (63-56) and clearances (15-9). They were also shading the inside-50m count 24-20 but must have known they’d need a much better return than the first half’s 1.8 to keep up their plucky challenge against the three-time reigning premier.

4. New life in the contest
As it happened, knowing they needed to maintain pressure and actually being able to proved to be two quite different propositions for the Blues. With their ears likely ringing from the message passed on by coach Alastair Clarkson at half-time, the Hawks leapt from the blocks in the third term and piled on four goals in the first 12 minutes. Whether it was frustration at the ballooning deficit – or simply for a nature break – Blues coach Brendon Bolton was seen exiting the box following a Jordan Lewis goal, but returned in time to see the Blues pile on four consecutive goals to breathe life into the contest during a much-improved third quarter.

5. The streaks continue
The Hawks were pushed as close as they have been for a while by Carlton, extending their 13-game winning streak over the Blues while simultaneously stretching their dominance at Aurora Stadium out to 19 consecutive wins. And while they’ll maintain their eight-point lead atop the AFL ladder, they were pushed all the way by a gutsy Carlton outfit who refused to roll over and showed continued signs of improvement under Bolton. While the Tasmanian would no doubt have loved his first win over former mentor Clarkson to have come in Launceston, there was plenty to like about his side’s effort on Saturday and with just a little more composure in front of goal it could certainly have been a different outcome.