The Cats started brightly, kicking the opening goal of the match, while the Hawks were wasteful in front of goal early.

While a 22-point lead by the end of the first term was enough to hold on to victory, Hawks coach Leigh Ramsdale said wayward kicking was “a bit of an issue”.

“We took control over the next quarter and a half,” he said.

“But by quarter-time we kicked 4.7 and our last game (against Numurkah) we kicked 2.9, so it’s probably something we have to try and identify.”

But the Hawks are still winning games and sit second on the ladder.

“We were still creating opportunities,” he said.

“In the second half we had plenty of footy and plenty of supply, though we just couldn’t put them away.

“The rain came down and it was a bit of an arm wrestle, it was an old-fashioned, slog of a day.

“And to their credit we couldn’t quite put them away and they hung in there.”

But as the goals dried up in the wet, that early lead proved invaluable.

“It was a good win,” Ramsdale said.

“They’re a bit of a benchmark in the competition with a quality group.”

Onballer Will Gorman continued his good form for the Hawks, while Brendan Liddell played well in his first game.

“He had some quality touches and kicked a quality goal and will only get better,” Ramsdale said.

Ramsdale said there was plenty to look forward to, with plenty of quality players to return.

“We’ve had our fair share of injuries and keep winning games of footy,” Ramsdale said.

“We’re pretty proud of that fact and just keep working on our game and keep looking to improve which we’re more than capable of doing.”

Ramsdale said the club was in a good position, with their firsts, seconds and fourths coming away from Finley with wins.

“It’s a good result against a strong club,” he said.