THE PRESSURE and intensity Dees fans have been desperate to see was back on Sunday afternoon, as Melbourne claimed a 43-point win over the Hawks.

In a one-sided affair at GIANTS Stadium, the Demons controlled the game at both ends of the field, to put themselves in 12th position on the ladder with one game up their sleeves.

Here are some of the figures which helped shape the contest in Round 7.

From the middle

Centre clearances:

Melbourne: 16 | Hawthorn: 7

Contested Possessions:

Melbourne: 124 | Hawthorn: 99

Disposals:

Melbourne: 316 | Hawthorn: 282

Tackles:

Melbourne: 47 | Hawthorn: 35

Time in possession:

Melbourne: 49% | Hawthorn: 38%

Hit-outs:

Gawn: 27 | McEvoy: 16

Once again, it was Max Gawn who set the tone in the centre, allowing the Demon midfielders to dominate around the ball and control possession for much of the afternoon.

But it was the boys’ hunger to chase, tackle, and win the ball back, which really stood out on Sunday afternoon.

02:12

RD 7 | Oscar McDonald post-match

We speak to Oscar McDonald post-match after another solid match down back.

Going forward

Inside 50’s:

Melbourne: 54 | Hawthorn: 33

Inside 50’s from centre bounces:

Melbourne: 12 | Hawthorn: 6

Marks inside 50:

Melbourne: 15 | Hawthorn: 5

Individual goal scorers:

Melbourne: 9 | Hawthorn: 4

Stemming from the midfield dominance, the Dees saw plenty of footy inside 50, resulting in their biggest score for 2020.

Fresh forward line fires against Hawks

A big second quarter, again

Scores:

Melbourne: 5.1 | Hawthorn: 1.1

Inside 50s:

Melbourne: 17 | Hawthorn: 7

Intercept marks:

Melbourne: 10 | Hawthorn: 5

Loose ball gets (midfield):

Melbourne: 13 | Hawthorn: 5

After a costly second term in Round 5, Melbourne has come out firing after quarter-time in its past two games to take important leads into half-time.

05:52

RD 7 | Simon Goodwin post-match

Watch Simon Goodwin's press conference after round seven's match against Hawthorn

Individual efforts

Christian Petracca:

Score involvements: 14 (game-high)

Contested possessions: 16 (equal game-high)

Clayton Oliver:

Inside 50s: 9 (game-high)

Metres gained: 505 (team-high)

Jack Viney:

Clearances: 9 (game-high)

Pressure acts: 26 (game-high)

Max Gawn:

Intercept possessions: 8 (team-high)

Contested marks: 6 (game-high)

Contested possessions: 16 (equal game-high)

Sam Weideman:

Scores: 3.2 (game-high)