Hawks miss out in first round loss
It was a case of missed opportunities for Drouin as they kicked off their season in disappointing fashion with a defeat to Bairnsdale away from home.
The Hawks looked off the pace for vast stretches of the day, conceding the first four goals of the match and never being able to bridge the gap during the 6.13 (49) to 9.11 (65) loss.
That's not to say they didn't have their chances, however. The Hawks managed to generate, but failed to make the most of scoring shots that would have had the Redlegs sweating.
Too often they were drawn like bees to a honeypot, the Drouin midfielders being too eager to head to the ball and leaving space on the outside for Bairnsdale to cut them up.
That's not to say the Hawks had no shining lights – recruits Ryan and Caleb Quirk put up strong efforts, Jordan Kingi was his reliable self and Tim Hancock provided a consistent contest in a forward line that needed it at times.
The opening period of the match was the worst for Drouin as Bairnsdale kicked four unanswered majors in the first half of the quarter to take a stranglehold on the contest early.
It wasn't until late in the term, after kicking six straight behinds, that Drouin finally struck back with consecutive goals to Eddie Morrie and Benjamin Brasier to keep them in the hunt.
A relatively even second term still had the Hawks alive, but as is often the case in footy the missed opportunities came back to haunt them.
Bairnsdale, using the width of their home ground to great effect, kicked the first three goals of the second half to blow the margin beyond 30 points.
Lachlan Byrne-Jones and Brayden McCarrey (three goals each) proved to be the most dangerous Redlegs around goal in the absence of playing coach Logan Austin, who was injured duirng last week’s season opener.
Recruits Tom Blenheim and Hugh Longbottom also showed plenty of class to suggest why the home side had sought them out during the offseason.
The Hawks managed to peg back the margin somewhat, but a wasteful final term (1.5) consigned them to a 16-point loss.
Coach Brent Clinnick described the result as "very disappointing."
"It was pretty disappointing in the fact that we didn't play well and we lost by two and a half goals," he said.
"We got a lot wrong and not a lot right, especially around the contest. We missed some easy opportunities and you need to take those chances if you want to challenge teams."
Clinnick said while the loss was a "squandered opportunity," the Hawks would bounce back.
"We didn't get totally outplayed which is a positive. We didn't play very well but we only lost by 16 points, if we'd been completely outplayed it would be a different story."
Drouin has made no secret of their desire to jump up the ladder in 2024, and it's games like this against other sides that didn't feature in finals last year that will likely decide what kind of jump, if any, they can make.
For them to lose this one will require a bit of a reset on their part. The Hawks next face the rebuilding Maffra at home this Saturday.
If they're serious about becoming better, it's a game they should, and some would say simply have to, win.