Hawthorn has pulled off a statement win in Finals Week 1, silencing Perth Stadium with a commanding 72–40 victory over Fremantle. Entering the contest as the away side, Hawthorn arrived coming off a strong 107–45 win against the West Coast Eagles, while Fremantle looked to rebound from an 82–119 loss to Carlton. Pre-match markets had Fremantle holding favouritism at 1.45 in the head to head, with Hawthorn seeing some late support, moving from 2.78 to 2.74 (firmed).
When the action got underway, it was the visitors who seized control. Fremantle struggled to find their usual scoring fluency on their home deck, managing just 40 points for the match as Hawthorn's defence locked down the contest. The total points line closed at 167.5, with the under seeing significant movement from 3.1 to 1.9 (firmed) ahead of the bounce, a shift that proved entirely justified as the game turned into a low-scoring defensive arm wrestle.
How the tips went
Looking back at our pre-match selections, it was a profitable outing for those who backed the bold value plays. The head to head selection on Hawthorn at 2.85 saluted cleanly as the visitors upset the ladder-leaders on their home turf to secure the win.
Meanwhile, the total points selection of Under 165.5 also got the job done at 3.1, cashing comfortably as both sides combined for a total of just 112 points in a tightly contested finals battle well below the bookmaker's line.