Hawks' defensive duo shut down Dockers; Brisbane must shift tactics to escape
Hawthorn defenders combined 22 intercepts to shut down Fremantle, offering Brisbane a warning about their own team.
Hawks defender James Sicily and Josh Battle each earned nine votes in the Gary Ayres Award for defensive brilliance in the Hawks' upset over Fremantle. The pair combined for 22 intercept possessions.
Strong positioning and line reading shut down the attacking side. Michael Voss, a three-time Brisbane premiership captain, says the Lions must change their ball movement angles to stop this tactic.
If Brisbane doesn't shift angles, Hawthorn's defenders will just line out and take strong positions, Voss warned. Matthew Lloyd added that Fremantle's forwards made a critical mistake by taking long searching leads.
The Hawks picked them off. Slow ball movement also helped Hawthorn, Lloyd said, a lesson Brisbane cannot ignore this weekend.
- 9
- Sicily Gary Ayres votes
- 9
- Battle Gary Ayres votes
- 22
- Combined intercepts
- MCG
- Hawks vs Brisbane venue
Why it mattersHawthorn's defensive scheme has proven it can stop high-scoring teams, making this preliminary final a genuine contest between attack and defence.
AustraliaThe outcome of this preliminary final will shape Australia's Grand Final, and Hawthorn's defensive approach is now the focus of AFL strategy talk.
✓ Claims checked against the source. checked 8 d ago
