Hawthorn coach Alastair Clarkson doesn't need to look at the AFL ladder to realise the importance of Saturday night's 10-point win over Sydney.
Sydney, Hawthorn and Geelong now all boast 13-4 records atop the ladder, making for an intriguing battle over the minor premiership during the final five rounds.
The result was important because of the four premiership points gained - and four lost by the Swans.
But also because of the added confidence and self-belief that comes with defeating the premiership favourites.
"If we're going to win it this year, we're probably going to have to get over Sydney," Clarkson said.
"So they'll continue to be good battles, but there's four or six other sides that are going to be really gunning hard for the last part of September as well."
The Hawks looked shot when the were down by 23 points early in the third quarter, but hopped off the canvas and proceeded to kick nine of the game's next 11 goals.
"Good sides can usually keep themselves in the contest somehow ... it was great resilience and I'm sure our players will get a lot of confidence out of being able to cope with that sort of situation," Clarkson said.
"That was the really pleasing thing about the game. We didn't play our greatest footy, but we managed to find a way to get the job done."
Clarkson offered little when discussing the long-term implications of the reigning premiers' victory over Sydney.
"I know it's boring as all hell, but we're still in the process of just adding up wins (before finals)," he said.
With another 'first' ticked off regarding former star Lance Franklin - this time his first match against Hawthorn at the MCG - Clarkson was keen to move on.
"We have to move on," he said of Franklin, who booted 3.5 and threatened to team the game apart.
"He's a good player, a formidable presence.
"Our forward line functions pretty well without him and Sydney's forward line functions pretty well with him."
Share
