The perfect start 🤩

The Hawks headed to Brisbane and brought home the four points, and a whole lot of belief in their ability to compete with the best

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R1: BRISBANE 3.11 (29) def by HAWTHORN 4.9 (33)

In a fiercely fought game, Hawthorn got our Qualifying Final revenge and recorded our first ever win against Brisbane with a hearty four-point victory.

We started off our 2025 campaign with a big win over last year’s runners up on the Lions’ home turf at Springfield Central Stadium.

It’s arguably one of Hawthorn’s most impressive wins in the AFLW so far, given Brisbane’s prowess as a strong women’s side. As one of the newest entries to the AFLW in the final stage of the expansion, it’s great to mark our arrival as a real competitor.

Hawthorn and Brisbane have been coveting a strong rivalry with the addition of former Lions Daniel Webster, Emily Bates and Greta Bodey to Hawthorn in recent years. This was only fuelled by a spicy meeting in the Qualifying Final last year, where Brisbane came out on top by six points.

Hawthorn held onto a thin leading margin from midway through the second quarter for the rest of the game and ultimately fended off a strong late surge from the Lions in the last quarter.

Despite missing Mackenzie Eardley, Jenna Richardson and additionally Aileen Gilroy as a late out, the Hawks clung on in the end to get the win.

While there are still areas of concern, it was a very promising start to our 2025 season as the Hawks looked improved in multiple areas compared to 2024. It’s good to see that our new recruits are adding value to the side and several returning players look like they’ve put their offseason time to good work.

🤩 Debut watch – Lavinia Cox, Najwa Allen and Keely Coyne join the brown and gold

The first outing for the year saw three debuts: our top draft pick Lavinia Cox (AFLW debut), former Adelaide premiership player Najwa Allen (Hawthorn debut) and former Bulldog Keely Coyne (Hawthorn debut).

In particular, the addition of Allen really strengthens our last-line defence and tightens up the structure of our backline.

A coupla Hawthorn #9’s

🧐 Things we like to see: Lucas-Rodd cements defensive spot

Tilly Lucas-Rodd’s move to the backline was already a clear success last year, as their great season was rewarded with their first ever All-Australian honours. But the genius of the move continues to shine through with every game as Lucas-Rood looks really solid down there for us.

Lucas-Rodd finished with a game-high 27 disposals.

The backline as a whole is shaping up nicely, with Richardson still to return as well.

🧐 Room for Improvement: Forward Opportunities

We opened the game by kicking four behinds which is not an ideal start and reminiscent of some of the accuracy issues we faced in finals last year.

Many of our opening quarter goal-kicking opportunities against Brisbane were challenging angles. Do we need to focus more on getting ourselves into better positions before having a shot at goal?

The forward line looks most in need of improvement, likely enhanced due to the absences of Mackenzie Eardley (who has been swinging forward more of late) and last minute out Aileen Gilroy.

🕵🏻‍♂️ Best on ground: Eliza West

Eliza West celebrated her 50th game against the Lions and quickly reminded us why she won our 2024 Best and Fairest. She and Bates make for a formidable combination in our midfield.

Leading the team out for a win

West finished the game with 25 disposals (including 18 contested possessions), six tackles and a game-high six inside 50s.

💫 Rising star: Mikayla Williamson

2023 draftee Mikayla Williamson had an impressive first half against the Lions.

In particular, she made a big goal-saving tackle on Sophie Conway right at the end of the second quarter with only a minute left on the clock. Brisbane had been threatening to get a goal for quite a while, but Williamson provided the momentum shift which in turn resulted in a Sherriff goal for us.

🦸‍♀️ Unsung hero: Ainslie Kemp

In a game where our backline really shone, Ainslie Kemp continues to go under the radar. She continues to serve as an important player for us, collecting 15 disposals and a game-high 407 metres gained.

🤕 Injury watch

Jasmine Fleming went down with an injury to her right knee in the third quarter and looked awkward as she made her way off the ground.

But after an assessment and much strapping tape, she made her way back on and immediately laid a tackle on Brisbane’s Tahlia Hickie.

All smiles post-match, surely that’s a sign

Hopefully there are no ongoing concerns for Fleming’s knee. She is an integral part of Hawthorn’s midfield and it would be devastating to see her miss out on part of our 2025 campaign.

Lucy Wales went off with the blood rule due a cut on her chin in the second quarter but easily played out the rest of the game.

🏁 Final score

BRISBANE 2.3 2.4 2.7 3.11 (29)

HAWTHORN 1.5 3.7 3.8 4.9 (33)

GOALS

Brisbane: Smith, Davidson, Hampson

Hawthorn: McDonagh 2, Bodey, Sherriff

Laser-focused on Round 2 already

⏭️ What’s up next?

In Round 2, we will play Carlton on Saturday 25 August at 7:15pm for our first home game of the season at Kinetic Stadium in Frankston.

We have met Carlton once before, beating them by 38 points at Frankston Park in Round 1 last year.

Carlton struggled in the 2024 season, finishing 14th with a 4-7 record. They opened their 2025 campaign with a 24-point win over last year’s wooden spooners Collingwood.

Carlton captain Abbie McKay had a big game against us last year, collecting 32 disposals. She has since been joined by her sister and fellow father-daughter selection Sophie McKay. The two sisters are the daughters of Carlton great Andrew McKay.

Mimi Hill once again demonstrated that she’s a force to be reckoned with in Carlton’s season opener against Collingwood, recording a massive game-high 32 disposals and a game-high 424 metres gained in a best on ground performance.

Carlton’s forward line has been strengthened since last year with the addition of former Gold Coast captain Tara Bohanna and the return of Irish forward Erone Fitzpatrick after she missed the entire 2024 season due to an ACL injury.

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