Hawthorn v Richmond PreviewAndrew Slevison
SEN
2 May 2025Hawthorn’s Centenary celebrations take place against Richmond at the MCG on Sunday.
The two clubs clashed in the Hawks’ very first VFL game back in 1925 at Glenferrie Oval with the Tigers saluting by 39 points.
On face value, you wouldn’t expect a similar result this weekend given the Hawks are a serious side and the Tigers are rebuilding.
Sam Mitchell’s Hawks returned to winning ways with a 50-point smashing of West Coast last Sunday night, recoiling after two straight defeats.
Ruckman Lloyd Meek was imperious, off-season recruit Josh Battle played his best game in brown and gold to date and veteran forward Jack Gunston keeps on keeping on, booting another four goals to take his season tally to 17.
The Tigers were competitive for three quarters against Melbourne but were blown away in the third term, which has been a bit of a trend in 2025. They’d want to stay competitive for longer against a side like the Hawks.
As mentioned earlier, this on paper appears somewhat one-sided but Adem Yze’s Tigers have already surprised Carlton and Gold Cast this season, so never say never.
The Hawks faithful helped the Tigers achieve an enormous crowd of 92,311 for Dusty’s 300th in June last year, so it would be nice to see the Tiger Army repay the faith for Hawthorn’s big day.
You’d expect that Richmond will at times make life difficult for the Hawks, but in the end the class of the top-four chasers should come out on top to tick their sixth win of the season.
Prediction: Hawthorn by 35 points.
https://www.sen.com.au/news/2025/05/01/who-will-win-and-why-tips-and-predictions-for-afl-round-8
