Izak Rankine Sparks Kuwarna's 2023 Launceston Comeback
Izak Rankine turned a nine-point deficit into a live chance for Kuwarna in Launceston in 2023, steering a late comeback against Hawthorn with a clever goal from the boundary line. The finish followed in the final minutes, with Darcy Fogarty taking the decisive mark and converting from a tight angle.
Rankine Opens The Door
Kuwarna trailed by nine points with 3.30 minutes remaining when Rankine found a way through from the boundary. That kick cut straight into Hawthorn’s grip on the game and set up the final surge.
Fogarty then took a mark in the same pocket with less than two minutes left. He did not miss the opening, kicking the match-winning goal from a tight angle and finishing the response that Rankine had started.
Launceston Runs Through Hawthorn
The 2023 result fit a series that has often swung late in Launceston. Kuwarna has played eight games there since first taking an AFL match to Tasmania in 2001, and seven of those have been against Hawthorn.
That run has produced recent split results. Hawthorn won the 2021 and 2025 clashes at UTAS Stadium, but Kuwarna beat the Hawks in 2023 after the boundary-line goal and Fogarty’s finish changed the score in the last minutes.
Thilthorpe, Keays, Newcombe
The same matchup has delivered other sharp turns. Riley Thilthorpe kicked five goals on debut for Kuwarna on Anzac Day in 2021, when the side built a 32-point lead early in the third quarter after scoring 15 goals without a miss. Hawthorn answered by kicking the last five goals and then adding behinds to hit the front.
In 2025, Kuwarna led by 15 points at half-time after Ben Keays kicked two goals in his 150th AFL game. The margin vanished when Kuwarna did not add another goal until late, and Hawthorn’s Jai Newcombe ran into an open goal to kick what proved to be the winner with four minutes to play.
That record leaves the Launceston matchup tight and unforgiving, especially in a Thursday night clash that falls in the second week of Sir Doug Nicholls Round. Kuwarna’s 2023 finish still stands as the clearest example of how quickly the game can swing when Rankine gets a clean look from the boundary and the next chance lands in Fogarty’s hands.
