Hawks edge closer to September with bruising 64-point win over Collingwood

Hawthorn had been on a holding pattern in terms of premiership contention for most of the season as they’d fluctuated with personnel and form, never quite looking like the excitement machine of last year.

Not anymore.

Sam Mitchell’s team looks to be timing its run to perfection given the way it treated premiership favourite Collingwood on Thursday night.

This was a clinic in a finals-type atmosphere which should send a statement to rival flag contenders saying while the Hawks may be missing their best player in Will Day, they just might have enough tricks up their sleeve to make it work.

Mitchell’s punt on playing four tall forwards has raised eyebrows but in the space of two quarters in perfectly dry September-like conditions at the MCG the football world saw his genius.

At half-time the Hawks led by 39 points with all four tall forwards on the scoreboard - Mabior Chol two goals, Mitch Lewis, Calsher Dear and Jack Gunston one - while part-time forward ruckman Lloyd Meek kicked two goals in the second quarter.

That might say a fair bit about Collingwood’s defensive issues, particularly after they lost Jeremy Howe in the opening couple of minutes but the synergy of the quartet looked good.

Lewis roamed further up the ground as the connector from defence, Gunston came out of the goal square, Chol played more the traditional centre half-forward while Dear had a licence to jump at anything.

In the end the Big Five kicked 12 of Hawthorn’s 17 goals with Gunston leading the way with four - including his 50th for the season - while Chol and Meek kicked three each.

This ‘Land of the Giants’ theory is helped immeasurably by having two of the best small forwards in the game. Nick Watson kicked the opening two goals of the night and was a menace all night while All-Australian Dylan Moore (25 disposals) has recaptured his best form just at the right time.

To get this to become one of the key narratives of the night, the ball needs to be down there a lot. That wasn’t a problem for Hawthorn’s midfield and it’s been a long time since Collingwood has been sat on their backside in the centre of the ground like this.

Meek destroyed Darcy Cameron and fed the likes of Jai Newcombe - who made a remarkable recovery after his clash with Howe - the improving Josh Ward, James Worpel, Conor Nash and Massimo D’Ambrosio.

They made a mess of more higher-profile opponents which is exactly what the Hawks defence did as well, running in waves off a limp Collingwood forward line.

This was a massive game for Hawthorn in terms of solidifying a final eight spot and keeping a game ahead of ninth-placed Western Bulldogs. They play Melbourne next week before a blockbuster final round showdown with reigning premiers Brisbane at the Gabba.

Where they end up in the final eight will be intriguing because in this mood they’re a team no-one will want to play.

Clearly peaking at the right time, the Hawks have players who don’t shy away from the spotlight, instead they sprint full speed into the bright lights.

Leading that charge is Watson. He’s no longer a handy forward pocket with a cheeky lip on him, he’s a matchwinner who has become a major centre clearance weapon for Mitchell.

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His speed and hardness was too much for the Pies old stagers around the ball, then he’d wander forward and make Brayden Maynard’s night a nightmare.

September is calling Watson, the same can’t be said about Collingwood.

They will be there thanks to the buffer created with a brilliant start of the season but while sides would be wanting to avoid the Hawks, they’d be queuing up to have a crack at this out-of-sorts Pies outfit.