Plucky Hawks Plucking a Flag? | Thebigtip

The Hawks are coming!  Seven on the trot prior to last week’s loss to Geelong has them right in with a chance.  As impressive as their string of victories has been though, it is the way they are winning that should be instilling fear amongst rivals.

Hawthorn has in no way been dominant.  With the exception of their belting of Carlton, each game has been tough, hard fought and gutsy. Through this, the Hawks have shown a great ability to find another gear in crunch times.  Against Essendon they were out for the count until Buddy decided to kick two goal of the year contenders.  Against the Bulldogs the Hawks kept level heads, complete with Sam Mitchell playing with a broken hand to curb a late canine onslaught.  Cool heads kept a plucky Richmond at bay, and great fight and spirit almost got the Hawks over the line against the Cats.

The ability to finish off a match when under siege is invaluable.  It is a show of strength, and of character.  It's not a trait a lot of teams can boast of having.  What we can take away from the Hawks in 2010 is they CAN perform under pressure.  They have the ability to keep it together under pressure.  This is perhaps the greatest improvement in the team this year.  What is remarkable is the turnaround from the first seven rounds to the last seven.

The loss against the Cats was a good loss, if there is such a thing.  It gives the Hawks a yardstick as to where they are at.  They now know where they need to improve, and can restock and refresh their artillery for the remaining rounds.  Josh Gibson was servicable in his comeback last week, and Shaun Burgoyne is starting to show some class in the middle, an aspect sorely missing since the retirement of Shane Crawford.  Crawfords retirement left a big hole in the side last season.  His leadership and nous in the middle was underrated.

Brisbane is a big game this week.  While the Hawks are one of the form teams of the league at the moment, they are in no way certainties for finals this year.  Another five or six wins, minimum, should give them a fighting chance in September.  Top teams should fearing the Hawks.  They know it will be a fight to the end against the Brown and Gold, and so far, Hawthorn are the specialists at grinding out the last minute battles.

Next big test for Hawthorn in the coming weeks will be St.Kilda, and Collingwood in the last round.  If they are any chance for an unlikely flag in 2010, they need to beat at least one of these sides.

Do you think the Hawks will ruffle feathers in 2010?  Should teams fear the boys from Waverly?  Who has 2010 on a string?  Comment below.

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