Alex Slavin will need to back up a strong performance against Binalong with another good effort alongside partner in crime Drew Arabin. Patrick Smith’s solid defence will also go a long way to keeping the middle tight for Harden.
Going into the long weekend with a 14 – 10 win against Binalong, the Hawks have spent the week preparing for a tough battle against the Bungendore Tigers starting at 3:00pm on Saturday at McLean Oval. The high flying Hawkettes will kick-off an hour earlier. Harden have been smarting since the Tigers beat them at Bungendore in the first round by 50 odd points and they have since played themselves in to some good form. Binalong beat Bungendore soon after the Harden loss and a fortnight ago the Hawks toppled Binalong.
There’s plenty of history between Bungendore and Harden with some of it going back to before the 2009 grand final. Some spray paint ended up on the McLean Oval surface prior to the GF and it spurred the Hawks on for the extra time win.
There’s only one man left standing from that side who is still playing for the current Hawks side, Luke Brown, who was wearing a 13 on his back but shared the halves role with live wire Daniel Drew. Tyson Astill is still running around in the Canberra competition this year and came back for a season with the Hawks a couple of seasons ago. Some of the players are still young enough to be playing but if they were 20 at the time of the Grand Final, would now be heading for 35.
It’s now up to this year’s 2024 Hawks to make their mark on history and take on a club which readily has access to some of the better players in the first grade Canberra Competition.
Coach Nick Hall said he is optimistic about the Hawk’s chances this weekend.
“I expect a better effort this game. We just weren’t ready. They had four trials and we had none. We had a disrupted pre-season, all the excuses in the world, but ultimately you have to tip your hat and say the other side was better,” he said.
“They are still a good side; they are the top side for a reason. I don’t know what will happen on the weekend and I don’t know what sort of side they will bring. When they have their full strength, they are going to be a good side. We have some more bullets in our gun and we are better prepared now than we were back then.”
“Binalong has some toughness and resilience there and that could have stood up that day against Bungendore and they got them earlier in the season.
Although a win against Bungendore, who handed them a loss in round 1, would help boost morale and the Hawks position on the ladder, Hall said, “a win doesn’t win us the comp and a loss is not terminal. We are not putting all our eggs in the basket this weekend, we just want to have a better showing.
“We want to play well at home and display our standard a little better. Round one was not representative of us.
“We all know that we have to share the leadership and at different points we have to stand up when the footy comes into our area, we have to play, we have to execute, we have to win, not necessary games, but you have to win moments, you have to win the play the ball, you have to dive on a loose ball, you have to make a tackle, you have to win.”
Jack Murray
