The Hawthorn–Essendon melee remembered as the ‘Line in the Sand’ match

The first gathering of players broke up and play resumed. The next became an all-in melee. Early in the third quarter of Hawthorn’s match against Essendon at the MCG on 5 June 2004, a confrontation at the centre bounce subsided. Moments later, after Hawthorn’s Chance Bateman accidentally caught Essendon’s Jason Winderlich with a knee, players from both sides piled in. Eighteen would face tribunal charges.

Hawthorn had entered the match with two wins for the season and eight consecutive losses to Essendon. By half-time, the Hawks were 32 points behind. Mark Williams kicked their first goal of the third quarter before the confrontations began. The fighting did not reverse the match: Essendon kicked nine goals to Hawthorn’s two that quarter and eventually won by 74 points, 154 to 80.

The match became known as the “Line in the Sand” game. A Hawthorn retrospective said former player and then club director Dermott Brereton had allegedly urged the team at half-time to draw a line in the sand and stand up to Essendon. Other later recollections emphasised coach Peter Schwab’s words.

Speaking on 3AW’s Footy: Then and Now podcast in 2022, former Hawthorn player John Barker recalled Schwab’s response to a tackle by Essendon’s Mark Johnson on Hawthorn ruckman Robbie Campbell before the break. “I think the most aggressive conversation came from our coach,” Barker said. “I know he pointed out that exact incident and said that, at some stage, we’ve got to stand for something.” Barker said Schwab wanted the players to “fly the flag”. On the same podcast, Matthew Lloyd said Essendon had little regard for Hawthorn at the time: “And we let them know about it through that period.”

After three days of deliberation, AFL investigators charged nine players from each club with engaging in a melee. Five Hawthorn players faced additional charges, as did Essendon’s Justin Murphy. By 9 June, the penalties totalled a record $70,700 in fines and 16 weeks of suspensions. Sixteen players were fined for the melee; Campbell Brown received a separate $1,200 wrestling fine.

Richard Vandenberg received six weeks after findings involving striking and leg contact with Adam McPhee. He denied striking, arguing that he was trying to grab McPhee, but the tribunal rejected that account. During the hearing, he pleaded guilty to misconduct for making unnecessary contact with his leg. Lance Picioane also denied striking McPhee; the tribunal found him guilty and suspended him for four weeks.

Brown pleaded guilty to wrestling and striking and received a four-week suspension. Simon Beaumont was banned for one week after being found guilty of striking and headbutting. Murphy received a one-match ban for headbutting. Barker, meanwhile, was cleared of striking McPhee but fined for taking part in the melee—a distinction between joining the melee and committing the alleged blow.

Tribunal chairman Brian Collis said the offences were serious because they occurred after play had stopped. “Players should set an example of how the game should be played both competitively and fairly,” he said, “and we don’t think this was responsible conduct.”