Lloyd Meek down to Jai Newcombe, who exploded out the front of stoppage and sent it deep to Mitch Lewis. Lewis created a predictable drop for the dynamic Connor MacDonald, who snapped Hawthorn's third goal in three minutes early in the last quarter last weekend.
It was arguably the match-winner, sapping Gold Coast and extending the margin to 25 points.
Hawthorn scored 32 points from centre stoppages against the Suns after concerning signs at centre stoppages in the weeks leading into the bye.
“We've worked on centre bounce for a considerable part of the year and we're starting to see change in there which has been positive,” Hawthorn midfield coach David Mackay told Zero Hanger.
“We'll keep going after it. You have to continually be giving yourself the best opportunity in there and all the craft you do around that specific part of the game tells over a period of time.”
Earlier in the season, the Hawks fell away significantly late in the game against Fremantle, did not capitalise on their clearances in a close loss to Western Bulldogs and started terribly in that area against Adelaide
Will Day's return has been timely, with Hawthorn winning just one of the four games prior to his return, and he provided a reminder of his talent last Friday night and looks primed for a big finish to the season after his shoulder injury.
Skipper Jai Newcombe has reinforced his credentials as a bona fide on-baller in 2026.
But whether the club has a strong and deep enough midfield around that pair to go all the way in 2026 has been a point of contention since images of an exasperated Tom Petroro emerged from Marvel Stadium at the end of the 2025 AFL Trade Period as it became clear his client, Zach Merrett, would not be a Hawk this year.
“I won't be getting into individual players but what I do now is our list management has been pretty open about trying to improve our list…we're going to try and do that at season's end,” Mitchell said on Channel 7's Agenda Setters on Monday.
Be that as it may, it won't help them hoist a 14th flag in 2026, putting the onus on the young midfielders to step up and assist Newcombe and Day.
Wingers
D'Ambrosio's 2026 season has flown under the radar, but he continues to play strong footy on the outside.
Averaging 20 disposals, his left boot is a weapon the Hawks want to maximise and has been an important conduit and is a key reason Hawthorn is second for going from the defensive half to forward 50 and scoring from their back half.
His ability to work defensively has lifted across the past 18 months and does important work off the ball which is what Mackay says is the foremost priority for the Hawks' wingers.
“He's had a good year and built into his work,” MacKay said.
“He's pretty unheralded with what he does.
“He's been one of those guys who has been consistently strong in the side of the game we value highly behind the scenes.
“We do like him with the ball, running and carrying it and entering the ball inside 50, he has a point of difference we encourage him to utilise as much as he can.”
Hawthorn rotate several other players through the wing position, including Jack Ginnivan, Harry Morrison and Josh Weddle. Hawthorn's ability to maintain their forward firepower with Ginnivan spending time further up the ground has been a major positive given his vision and footy smarts can open the game up.
