Hawthorn rucks Ned Reeves and Lloyd Meek feasted all night long as they combined for an astounding 64 hit-outs compared to only 17 for the Dogs.<\/p>\n
That aerial dominance saw the Hawks finish the contest with a 43-31 clearance advantage as they secured the 15.14 (104) to 8.16 (64).<\/p>\n
Two-time premiership star for North Melbourne David King slammed the Dogs for their decision to enter the highly-anticipated clash without a genuine ruck.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you come in without a recognised ruckman, you pay full price in modern footy. Meek has been angry tonight, he\u2019s the Meek of old,\u201d King said on Fox Footy at halftime.<\/p>\n
\u201cHim and Reeves have taken full control – nine hit-outs to advantage to zero. Around the ground, the clearances are 20-14 (Hawthorn\u2019s way).<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Hawks are having their way with them. I don\u2019t know how Luke Beveridge can address that. he can throw Rory Lobb in there but let\u2019s be honest, he\u2019s not gong to be able to compete against those two either. <\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s probably the greatest challenge a coach can have, not have a ruckman who can engage in the fight.\u201d<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Things got even worse for the Dogs in the dying stages of the contest with star midfielder Ed Richards hobbling from the field.<\/p>\n
The 26-year-old entered the contest under an injury cloud with a knee before he was left in serious pain with what appeared to be another leg\/knee injury.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s in real trouble. Gee, this is sad,\u201d King said.<\/p>\n
Anthony Hudson added: \u201cTrained freely at the main session, so they cleared him to play. No one wants to see that. Literally adding injury to insult.<\/p>\n
\u201cHard to watch, he\u2019s in that much pain.\u201d<\/p>\n
The loss is the first on the season for the Dogs and drops them down to fourth on the ladder behind the Swans, Dockers and Hawks.<\/p>\n
They\u2019ll look to bounce back next Friday night when they venture into Geelong for a clash against the Cats while the Hawks will look to make it five straight wins when they take on Port Adelaide.<\/p>\n