Essendon v Hawthorn, Round 1 2026
2026 AFLRound 1
| Club | QT | HT | 3QT | FT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ESS | 4.3 27 | 6.3 39 | 9.5 59 | 13.5 83 |
| HAW | 5.4 34 | 12.11 83 | 18.14 122 | 21.19 145 |
MCG, MelbourneOvercast, 20°Lead changes 0
Recap
Hawthorn thrash Essendon by 62
Hawthorn 21.19 (145) beat Essendon 13.5 (83) at MCG in Round 1, a 62-point win.
Hawthorn led at every change.
Jack Gunston kicked five goals for Hawthorn and Nick Watson four; Sam Durham kicked two for Essendon.
Nick Watson led the way with 17 disposals and four goals.
A run of six straight goals in the second quarter stretched the lead from 6 to 43.
Hawthorn won the inside-50 count 69–40 and won the clearances 41–28.
In context
- Essendon’s 14th loss in a row, going back to last season.
- AFL debuts for Hussien El Achkar and Dyson Sharp and Max Kondogiannis.
- First game for Essendon: Brayden Fiorini.
- Milestone: Blake Hardwick’s 200th game.
Best on ground
Hawthorn · #5 · 81% game time
- 17
- D
- 4
- G
- 6
- M
- 5
- T
1 clearances · 4 inside 50s · AFL Fantasy 111
Brownlow votes2026 count
Score worm
Essendon aheadHawthorn aheadGoalFour or more goals in a row
- 6 goals in a row to HawthornQ2 16:08 – 32:44
- 4 goals in a row to HawthornQ3 10:52 – 24:40
- Hawthorn lead by 73Q4 12:02
- 4 goals in a row to EssendonQ4 14:43 – 21:05
EssendonGoals
- S. Durham 2
- X. Duursma 2
- D. Sharp 2
- N. Caddy 1.1
- J. Caldwell 1.1
- B. Fiorini 1.1
- Z. Merrett 1.1
- H. El Achkar 1
- A. Perkins 1
- P. Wright 1
HawthornGoals
- J. Gunston 5.1
- N. Watson 4.2
- C. Macdonald 2.2
- J. Weddle 2.2
- N. Reeves 2
- M. Chol 1.3
- J. Ginnivan 1.3
- D. Moore 1.1
- J. Newcombe 1.1
- M. D'Ambrosio 1
- C. Nash 1
- Venue
- MCG, Melbourne
- Field umpires
- Daniel Johanson, Brendan Hosking, Simon Meredith, Martin Rodger
EssendonFinal team
Interchange
- 15Sharp
- 26May
- 29Kondogiannis
- 21Roberts
- 16Perkins
EmergenciesJ. Farrow, M. Guelfi, S. El-Hawli
Milestones
- Hussien El Achkar · Debut game
- Dyson Sharp · Debut game
- Max Kondogiannis · Debut game
First game for the club
- Brayden Fiorini · Greensborough (Vic)/Northern U18/Gold Coast
- Hussien El Achkar · Pascoe Vale (Vic)/Calder U18
- Dyson Sharp · Barossa District (SA)/Central District (SANFL)
- Max Kondogiannis · Kew Rovers (Vic)/Oakleigh U18
HawthornFinal team
How the FanCrew rating works
FanCrew rating: Champion Data rating points and AFL Fantasy points together, on a 0–10 scale against every AFL game since 2001 (Fantasy points alone before 2012). 6.5 is a typical game, 8.5 and up a standout. Players need 15% game time to be rated.
Hawthorn won the inside-50 count 69–40 and won the clearances 41–28.
ESSAttackHAW
- Inside 50s 69
- Scoring shots 21.1940
- Accuracy 53%
40
1813.5
72%
The ball
- Disposals 409
- Contested possessions 110
- Clearances 41
- Marks 157
- Tackles 52
- Free kicks 15
- Biggest lead 73
338
105
28
75
46
20
0
Disposals
Goals
Marks
Tackles
Essendon13.583
| Player | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7Z. Merrett | 32 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 112 | 17 | 15 | 6 | 0 | |
| 27M. Redman | 26 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 102 | 20 | 6 | 2 | 0 | |
| 22S. Durham | 23 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 94 | 10 | 13 | 2 | 0 | |
| 3D. Parish | 21 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 75 | 12 | 9 | 6 | 0 | |
| 1A. McGrath | 21 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 82 | 8 | 13 | 2 | 0 | |
| 6J. Caldwell | 18 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 91 | 11 | 7 | 1 | 0 | |
| 28X. Duursma | 12 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 61 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 0 | |
| 32B. McKay | 12 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 53 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
| 8B. Fiorini | 20 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 74 | 7 | 13 | 2 | 0 | |
| 16A. PerkinsInt | 17 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 66 | 8 | 9 | 4 | 0 | |
| 21A. RobertsInt | 20 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 59 | 13 | 7 | 3 | 0 | |
| 15D. SharpInt | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 50 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | |
| 29M. KondogiannisInt | 15 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 52 | 5 | 10 | 1 | 0 | |
| 30N. Caddy | 11 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 56 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 0 | |
| 40Z. Johnson | 16 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 50 | 9 | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
| 25J. Prior | 10 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 38 | 5 | 5 | 3 | 0 | |
| 46L. Blakiston | 9 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 47 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 19 | |
| 33H. El Achkar | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 33 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | |
| 20P. Wright | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 34 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 6 | |
| 42J. Nguyen | 12 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 37 | 5 | 7 | 1 | 0 | |
| 4K. Langford | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | |
| 31Z. Reid | 10 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
| 26A. MayInt | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Team | 338 | 13 | 5 | 75 | 46 | 28 | 1343 | 175 | 163 | 40 | 25 |
Hawthorn21.19145
| Player | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5N. Watson | 17 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 5 | 1 | 111 | 13 | 4 | 4 | 0 | |
| 6J. Sicily | 26 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 4 | 0 | 120 | 21 | 5 | 5 | 0 | |
| 25J. Ward | 26 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 107 | 16 | 10 | 8 | 0 | |
| 4J. Impey | 23 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 114 | 16 | 7 | 2 | 0 | |
| 9C. Macdonald | 24 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 84 | 15 | 9 | 7 | 0 | |
| 8D. Moore | 24 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 99 | 17 | 7 | 4 | 0 | |
| 7N. ReevesInt | 12 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 73 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 17 | |
| 11C. NashInt | 23 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 4 | 7 | 86 | 6 | 17 | 1 | 0 | |
| 23J. Weddle | 16 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 94 | 8 | 8 | 6 | 0 | |
| 3J. Newcombe | 22 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 6 | 91 | 11 | 11 | 2 | 0 | |
| 24J. Battle | 18 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 94 | 14 | 4 | 0 | 0 | |
| 15B. Hardwick | 21 | 0 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 85 | 13 | 8 | 0 | 0 | |
| 33J. Ginnivan | 20 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 99 | 14 | 6 | 7 | 0 | |
| 19J. Gunston | 10 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 84 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 0 | |
| 28C. Mackenzie | 21 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 5 | 5 | 95 | 13 | 8 | 1 | 0 | |
| 10K. Amon | 23 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 77 | 17 | 6 | 8 | 0 | |
| 17L. Meek | 13 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 65 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 26 | |
| 18M. Chol | 14 | 1 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 1 | 75 | 13 | 1 | 3 | 0 | |
| 14J. ScrimshawInt | 16 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 71 | 12 | 4 | 1 | 0 | |
| 16M. D'Ambrosio | 12 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 52 | 6 | 6 | 4 | 0 | |
| 2M. LewisInt | 11 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 51 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 0 | |
| 30S. ButlerInt | 9 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 46 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| 37T. Barrass | 8 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 31 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | |
| Team | 409 | 21 | 18 | 157 | 52 | 41 | 1904 | 265 | 144 | 69 | 43 |
Bold marks each side's best in a column; tap a heading to sort. RTG is the FanCrew rating, AF is AFL Fantasy points.
First quarterESS 4.3 (27) · HAW 5.4 (34)
- 0:58GoalJ. GunstonHAW0.0 (0) – 1.0 (6)
- 2:43BehindJ. NewcombeHAW0.0 (0) – 1.1 (7)
- 4:21GoalS. DurhamESS1.0 (6) – 1.1 (7)
- 6:01GoalC. MacdonaldHAW1.0 (6) – 2.1 (13)
- 8:19BehindJ. CaldwellESS1.1 (7) – 2.1 (13)
- 8:56GoalJ. WeddleHAW1.1 (7) – 3.1 (19)
- 10:19GoalX. DuursmaESS2.1 (13) – 3.1 (19)
- 13:14GoalN. ReevesHAW2.1 (13) – 4.1 (25)
- 14:57BehindJ. GunstonHAW2.1 (13) – 4.2 (26)
- 16:10BehindJ. GinnivanHAW2.1 (13) – 4.3 (27)
- 18:42GoalD. SharpESS3.1 (19) – 4.3 (27)
- 20:35GoalC. MacdonaldHAW3.1 (19) – 5.3 (33)
- 22:28BehindK. LangfordESS3.2 (20) – 5.3 (33)
- 26:51GoalS. DurhamESS4.2 (26) – 5.3 (33)
- 28:46RushedHawthornHAW4.2 (26) – 5.4 (34)
- 29:27BehindB. FioriniESS4.3 (27) – 5.4 (34)
Second quarterESS 2.0 (12) · HAW 7.7 (49)
- 0:58BehindN. WatsonHAW4.3 (27) – 5.5 (35)
- 3:00GoalJ. GunstonHAW4.3 (27) – 6.5 (41)
- 5:22BehindD. MooreHAW4.3 (27) – 6.6 (42)
- 7:23GoalZ. MerrettESS5.3 (33) – 6.6 (42)
- 9:08BehindM. LewisHAW5.3 (33) – 6.7 (43)
- 9:38BehindC. MackenzieHAW5.3 (33) – 6.8 (44)
- 11:16GoalD. SharpESS6.3 (39) – 6.8 (44)
- 14:45BehindM. CholHAW6.3 (39) – 6.9 (45)
- 16:08GoalM. CholHAW6.3 (39) – 7.9 (51)
- 21:12BehindK. AmonHAW6.3 (39) – 7.10 (52)
- 22:18GoalN. WatsonHAW6.3 (39) – 8.10 (58)
- 24:31GoalM. D'AmbrosioHAW6.3 (39) – 9.10 (64)
- 27:27GoalJ. GunstonHAW6.3 (39) – 10.10 (70)
- 29:11BehindM. CholHAW6.3 (39) – 10.11 (71)
- 31:31GoalN. ReevesHAW6.3 (39) – 11.11 (77)
- 32:44GoalN. WatsonHAW6.3 (39) – 12.11 (83)
Third quarterESS 3.2 (20) · HAW 6.3 (39)
- 1:46BehindZ. MerrettESS6.4 (40) – 12.11 (83)
- 3:56GoalB. FioriniESS7.4 (46) – 12.11 (83)
- 6:00GoalJ. GunstonHAW7.4 (46) – 13.11 (89)
- 7:33GoalD. MooreHAW7.4 (46) – 14.11 (95)
- 8:54GoalN. CaddyESS8.4 (52) – 14.11 (95)
- 10:52GoalC. NashHAW8.4 (52) – 15.11 (101)
- 11:57BehindC. MacdonaldHAW8.4 (52) – 15.12 (102)
- 14:09GoalJ. WeddleHAW8.4 (52) – 16.12 (108)
- 16:12GoalJ. GinnivanHAW8.4 (52) – 17.12 (114)
- 18:07BehindN. CaddyESS8.5 (53) – 17.12 (114)
- 20:57BehindJ. WeddleHAW8.5 (53) – 17.13 (115)
- 23:04BehindJ. WeddleHAW8.5 (53) – 17.14 (116)
- 24:40GoalJ. NewcombeHAW8.5 (53) – 18.14 (122)
- 26:50GoalH. El AchkarESS9.5 (59) – 18.14 (122)
Last quarterESS 4.0 (24) · HAW 3.5 (23)
- 2:17BehindN. WatsonHAW9.5 (59) – 18.15 (123)
- 4:34BehindJ. GinnivanHAW9.5 (59) – 18.16 (124)
- 6:19GoalJ. GunstonHAW9.5 (59) – 19.16 (130)
- 8:09BehindM. CholHAW9.5 (59) – 19.17 (131)
- 12:02BehindJ. GinnivanHAW9.5 (59) – 19.18 (132)
- 14:43GoalX. DuursmaESS10.5 (65) – 19.18 (132)
- 16:42GoalA. PerkinsESS11.5 (71) – 19.18 (132)
- 18:03BehindC. MacdonaldHAW11.5 (71) – 19.19 (133)
- 19:20GoalP. WrightESS12.5 (77) – 19.19 (133)
- 21:05GoalJ. CaldwellESS13.5 (83) – 19.19 (133)
- 25:37GoalN. WatsonHAW13.5 (83) – 20.19 (139)
- 28:35GoalN. WatsonHAW13.5 (83) – 21.19 (145)