For many years, Hawthorn brought the fear factor to the AFL.
Alastair Clarkson's unsociable footy had the league on their knees for several years and delivered the Hawks three flags between 2013 and 2015.
But as the Hawks prepare to return to the MCG for a qualifying final with Richmond, Clarkson admitted being "intimidated" by the prospect of playing minor premiers Richmond.
"They haven't been beaten there for a long, long time," he said.
"They've been eyeing off this particular game for a lot longer than we have. We've been eyeing it off since Saturday night. They've known they'll be top four for the last six weeks, if not the whole season.
"Quite clearly we're going to need to play somewhere near our very best to knock them off ... but we give ourselves a shot."
Bookmakers give Hawthorn the least chance of success of each of the first-week finalists.
Richmond's 21-game winning streak at the MCG is one of the reasons why. That steak dates back to June last year and includes two meetings with the Hawks.
Their most recent meeting came in round three this season, when the Tigers held Hawthorn at arm's length all afternoon.
"They had it on toast by three quarter time," Clarkson said.
"We came back a bit in the last quarter to make the scoreboard respectable but we were never really in the game after quarter time.
Clarkson suggested he'd be looking more to their last month of footy rather than that April clash as they prepare for next Thursday's qualifying final.
"We'll have a little bit of a look. It was a hard one to judge," he said.
"They came off a loss. They played Adelaide round two ... they came off a 10-day break and we were on a six day break I think. It's hard to get a gauge on that game."
Either way, the clubs will create a slice of history at the MCG as they come together for their first post-season clash.
Clarkson, who revels in his football history and has a close bond with former Hawthorn coach John Kennedy Sr, said it was remarkable that only now the two clubs would meet in finals.
"It's extraordinary given how strong they were in the 70s. They shared five premierships in 10 years," he said.
"We defy history in this next game with big stakes."
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