It was a new look Williamstown side from the one that played against Port Melbourne the week prior, with Phil Smith, Kwame McHarg and Mathew Grossman amongst eight inclusions. Jake Wilson was another addition to the team, making his senior VFL debut.
The Hawks were never a match for the visiting side, as the Gulls piled on six consecutive first quarter goals after Box Hill kicked the first of the game.
A six goal to none second term saw Williamstown extend out to a 63 point lead at the main break.
In stark contrast to the two teams' hard fought round three match, this game was a blowout.
The hard running and link-up of Ben Davies, Lindsay Gilbee, Kwame McHarg and Mathew Grossman provided many highlights, as the Gulls utilised the wide expanses of the Box Hill City Oval to their advantage.
David Stretton produced a sterling performance on prolific Box Hill midfielder Sam Gibson, keeping the Hawks star quiet whilst collecting 30 disposals of his own - including 12 in the first quarter.
Ben Jolley was dominant through the middle of the ground collecting 38 touches. Jolley was well supported by Brett Johnson, Sam Reid, and Dylan Addison who all collected over 25 possessions each.
Bulldogs rookie Mitch Hahn was a dominant force up forward, accumulating17 marks and kicking four goals. Only poor kicking prevented him from a larger haul.
Matthew Cravino too was a focal point in front of goal, creating many scoring shots whilst snaring 10 marks and 20 possessions.
Defensively the backline was strong all day with the likes of Jack Frost, Jake Wilson, Phil Smith, Dane Rampe, Steve McCallum and Matthew Panos restricting Box Hill to just seven goals for the day.
In shades of last year’s routing of the Hawks in the last round of the VFL season, it was close to a complete performance by the Seagulls. However, bigger challenges now await the club with finals now just one week away.
SCORE:
Box Hill Hawks 1.1 3.1 4.2 7.6 (48)
Williamstown 6.1 13.4 16.7 23.11 (149)
GOALS:
Williamstown: Hahn 4 Davies 3 Johannisen 3 Carr 2 Hill 2 Reid 2 Minson Rampe Grossman Cravino Gilbee Jolley Goodes
BEST:
Williamstown: Stretton Jolley Hill Hahn Cravino Reid
Development Report:
In the top of the table clash against Box Hill, Williamstown suffered a 49 point loss to the ladder leaders. The young seagulls stuck with Box Hill early on, however costly turnovers gifted Box Hill goals in the first half. The third quarter saw the Seagulls come back to reduce the margin to 32 points at the final change, but the home side ran out stronger to take a comfortable victory.
Michael Fogarty, Nick Sing and Anton Woods were all impressive for the Gulls, whilst Jack Gray kicked three goals to lead the scoring.
Box Hill Hawks 4.2 9.4 11.10 16.17 (113)
Williamstown 2.2 4.3 7.4 10.4 (64)
GOALS:
Williamstown: Gray 3 Hill 2 Conway 2 Walters Mason Purton-Smith
BEST:
Williamstown: Sing Fogarty Woods Ryan Griffiths Coles
Next Week:
The final round of the VFL season sees Williamstown head to Frankston to take on the Dolphins. Frankston enter the upcoming fixture after producing their best performance of the season to defeat Coburg.
Williamstown v Frankston
Frankston Park
Sunday 28th August, 2011
Development 11am, Seniors 2pm
