Hawthorn Hawks v Melbourne Demons
AFL: Australia: AFL Premiership 2010
Venue : Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Melbourne
Sunday, 15th August 2010 - Start 14:10 AEST

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Nothing too exciting in this match apart from the bet.

The Hawks went to Sydney and got smashed last week but against an up and down Melbourne side I think the Hawks are a sure bet in this clash.

The Demons are very promising and with a more consistent effort from the start to finish of next season I feel they could be a genuine contender.

Hawthorn Hawks
8th, 9-9-1 W/L/D, Form : LWDLL

The Hawks need to win to stay in the race for a home final and i think that will be motive enough to get the win. Their big name players should be raring to go as September draws near and their coach will rip through them if they drop this one.

Down back it will be Josh Gibson and centre half back with Ben Stratton and Thomas Murphy also lending a helping hand in defence. Stratton and Murphy have been solid this year and offer some hope to Hawks fans that the future may be bright. The responsibility will lie with Grant Birchall and Brent Guerra when it comes to transferring defence into attack and I think their quality ball use should help the Hawks in that respect.

The centreline is reliant on Luke Hodge and Sam Mitchell and if their possession count is somewhere around 30 you can expect the Hawks to come out on top. It will be up to Xavier Ellis, Cyril Rioli and Brad Sewell to complement the main two players and if they can it looks like the Hawks will have the clear edge through the centre. Especially with the explosiveness of Rioli when he bursts though the centre and leaves his opponents in his wake.

The forward line sees Lance Franklin and Jarryd Roughead as the focal points and they will need to have a scoreboard impact in order to get the win. The lesser known players such as Clinton Young and Michael Osborne are more than handy around goal and with Jordan Lewis’s ability to take a strong grab and kick a goal I think scoring should come easily enough for Hawthorn.

Melbourne Demons
10th, 8-10-1 W/L/D, Form : WLWWW

The Demons could sneak into the finals if they win their final 3 games and other results go their way. They beat the Tigers last week which was no great surprise but the stakes get higher this weekend and I don’t know if they can keep the intensity up to match the Hawks.

The Dees have some very promising defenders and I am sure they’ll be
tested this Sunday. Colin Garland, James Frawley and Clint Bartram will be the next wave for the Demons and it will be interesting to see how they fare against some solid opposition this weekend. Cameron Bruce and Jared Rivers will offer a bit of experience across half back and if they have a good game they might keep it close.

Melbourne’s best player is Aaron Davey and his quality through the midfield may keep the Demons in it. Davey is silky and his pace can turn the game on its head because he uses the ball so well. Colin Sylvia and Tom Scully will need to offer some other quality through the middle to complement the hardness provided by James McDonald. McDonald is experienced and with his career beginning to wind down he will be doing all he can to help the youngsters.

The Dees have a unique forward line led by Brad Green. Green is a clean cut figure who is widely respected and his ability on the footy field is right up there. Jamie Bennell and Liam Jurrah will need to have good games and apply a great deal of forward 50 pressure in order to cause turnovers that result in scoring chances for the Dees. Lynden Dunn kicked a bag of goals last week and will be another man the Hawks will need to keep an eye on.

The Betting Tip

Take Hawthorn to win

FIXED ODDS BETTING :

Take Hawthorn to win at 1.67 on Centrebet. (High Stakes)