Geelong v Hawthorn Rd 4 AFL betting tips & odds – 10/4/2023

April 6, 2023 12:10 pm.by Nathan Falkner

Geelong Cats v hawthorn Hawks AFL Tips


Geelong Cats v Hawthorn Hawks AFL Betting Odds & Game Info
Best odds	Geelong $1.19 at Neds \| Hawthorn $4.75 at BetOnline
When	Monday, April 10 \| 3:20pm AEST
Where	MCG, Melbourne
Last time they met	Hawthorn 14.8.92 – Geelong 11.14.80 (Rd 5, 2022)
Watch live	Seven, Foxtel, Kayo

The fourth round of the AFL season culminates at the MCG for the annual Easter Monday clash between Geelong and Hawthorn. Astoundingly, last year’s premiers come into this game having not yet notched a win in 2023, while the Hawks got their team on the board by beating North Melbourne in Tasmania.

It’s quite remarkable that the Geelong Cats, who were so dominant in the 2022 grand final, are staring down the worst start for a premiership side since 1976. There is something wrong down at the Cattery, and it is speaking volumes with their on-field performance.

Geelong looked the worst we’ve seen them last week – they were inefficient, disinterested, slow, and unfit. Not to say that the Suns weren’t good, but their job was made a lot easier when the Cats consistently gave them the ball.

However, we only need to look back to Sydney’s start to 2017 to know that the start to a season isn’t the strongest indication of where a team will land at the end. Geelong are stacked with talent, experience, and they are well drilled. They just need to get their mojo back, and what better game to do it than against their old rivals?

Hawthorn are tipped to win the dreaded wooden utensil at the end of the year – they just aren’t very good. Geelong will look to take advantage of a struggling team and get their first win of the season. They are the favourites for a reason at $1.19 with the top bookmakers.

After a rough first two weeks to the season, the Hawthorn Hawks bounced back in a big way against North. They dominated the clearances, albeit aided by the absence of the Roos’ star mids, and showed plenty of fluid ball movement.

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Hawthorn are a young team, and the longer they spend learning the gameplan under Sam Mitchell, the better they will become – they just aren’t there yet. That’s not to say that the Hawks should come in and expect to get destroyed; far from it – they should have some confidence coming into the weekend. We only have to cast our minds back to last Easter Monday, where a lowly Hawks team beat the eventual premiers.

A big player in that game was Hawks midfielder Jai Newcombe. The kid entered that game having been selected the previous year in the mid-season draft, 20 years young, and having only played a handful of games. But that day he announced himself to the football world as he torched the opposing Geelong mids en route to a best-on-ground performance.

Such is the hype around the young Hawk, he was even bestowed with the No.3 – the great Leigh Matthews’ old number. Newcombe lives for the big stage, so expect him to put on another spirited performance and amass 25 or more disposals ($2.20).

Geelong’s colossal key forward Tom Hawkins hasn’t been himself in the early parts of the season. He is coming back from an injured foot and looks to be almost hobbling around, barely able to get near the ball. This has left a lot of the forward work to his partner-in-crime, Jeremy Cameron.

Cameron is a tremendous footballer, but even he will struggle against Hawthorn’s defensive aerial supremacy. This means that the Cats’ small forwards will have to stand up, and Ollie Henry is one such player that can lift to the level of the game.

A highly publicised transition to the club, Henry will look to prove himself to his teammates. With Cameron and Hawkins held well, Henry will be the Cats’ next go-to scorer, and if this is to happen, then look for the youngster to get two or more goals ($2.15).

Key matchup: Jeremy Cameron v James Sicily

Jeremy Cameron

James Sicily

30	Age	28
196cm	Height	188cm
94kg	Weight	90kg
213	Games	118
542	Goals	59
18.7	2023 disposal average	27.7

Jeremy Cameron is arguably the best key forward in the game. He is mobile, skilful, and has no issues with the contested play either. But with Hawkins playing like a shell of his former self, too much has fallen on the Cameron’s shoulders of late. Not that he isn’t up to challenge; his six-goal performance against Carlton is testament to that. If Cameron gets half a chance, he can be the most damaging player on the ground, and thus almost win the match off his own boot.

The player most likely to go to Cameron will be the new Hawthorn captain, James Sicily. He is a competitive beast who relishes the challenge of shutting down the competition’s best forwards. Sicily will know the importance of the job he has ahead of him, especially if he wishes to see his side victorious. One thing is for sure: when these two hotheads go against each other, sparks will fly.