Late on Saturday afternoon, Hawthorn's 35-point win against Melbourne seemed like a relatively close shave for the Hawks, a game blown apart late only after a superb final quarter from veteran forward Jack Gunston.
And yet by Sunday evening, after an incredible round of AFL football, you could argue that, relatively speaking, the Hawks had romped it in.
Theirs was far and away the biggest margin of a round in which eight of the nine games were decided by just 15 points or less, including a draw. Seldom have a few days of an AFL season underlined more effectively just how minimal can be the difference between victory and defeat.
And now perhaps seldom will there be for Hawthorn a better example of how dramatically preparation in AFL football has changed than the next few days.
As you read this (most likely some time on Monday), the Hawks are probably already in Darwin, or at least on their way there for Thursday night's game against Gold Coast, the Suns already ensconced in the tropical heat having claimed a hard-fought 10-point victory over Western Bulldogs at TIO Stadium on Saturday night.
And if Gold Coast isn't already a tough enough assignment for any team in its own right, a five-day break and being catapulted into very different climatic surrounds surely ups the difficulty factor a few more notches.
The Hawks have trod this same path once before, two years ago, and it didn't end well for them, smashed by 67 points by the same opponent. "We didn't handle it as well as we thought as a club," coach Sam Mitchell conceded after the win over Melbourne.
You can certainly understand Mitchell's anxiety about this attempt to get it right, too, given that his side is third on the ladder, having won seven of its nine games, but without really ever having knocked anyone's socks off with the sort of blistering football we'd come to expect from the Hawks by the end of last year.
Melbourne, itself just going despite three wins on end, was also Hawthorn's third win in a row, but given how poor the Demons have been overall this season, and that the other two victories were over Richmond and West Coast, there's validity in the question: just how well are the Hawks going?
Of course you'd take that 7-2 scoreline anytime, given Hawthorn started 2024 a miserable 0-5 and at this same stage of the season was only 3-6. The Hawks have beaten the Giants, and their narrow seven-point loss to Geelong on Easter Monday was one of the higher-standard games of this season.
But Gold Coast on Thursday night represents the start of a five-week litmus test for Hawthorn which will give us a far more definitive answer to the question of where Mitchell's side stands relative to its accomplishments of 2024.
After a nine-day break following the Suns clash, the Hawks take on Brisbane then Collingwood in succession at the MCG, then it's the Bulldogs at Marvel Stadium and Adelaide in Launceston.
If that sounds hard enough, take a look at the current ladder for the confirmation. It's actually five games in a row against the five other teams in the top six.
The comparison with 2024 might become a lot more interesting even on the win-loss front by the end of that little run, too, given that 3-6 had become 7-7 by the end of Hawthorn's 14th game last year.
Which isn't, of course, to suggest the Hawks are about to drop their next five. But they are some way from their best still, not surprising in some ways given the prolonged absence of the classy Will Day and tall forward Calsher Dear, and the stop-start seasons of a few other keys besides.
Statistically, there's actually been some improvements on last year. Hawthorn was sixth last year for both points scored and conceded. The Hawks are currently fourth in both categories, more efficient scoring from their inside 50 entries than they were, while generating fewer of those opportunities.
But in summary, you'd assess the current version, to date anyway, perhaps as a grittier but less dynamic Hawthorn compared to 2024.
As Mitchell observed after the Melbourne win, there's nothing wrong with the Hawks' pressure, ranked No.1 in the competition before the weekend compared to last year's 11th.
But their contested possession, ground ball, and clearance differential rankings have fallen substantially so far this season relative to 2024, and they're battling harder to win territory, the inside 50 differential count and time in forward half differential ratings both well down on last year also.
As much as Mitchell will be enjoying his team's harder edge and sterner defence, you do get the sense the Hawks will need to ramp up their offensive efforts and running game to cause the sort of damage at the pointy end of the season of which they looked eminently capable last September.
That requirement makes for even greater stakes over the next month-and-a-bit. We're not even quite at the halfway mark yet in season 2025, but when it comes to preparing for the bigger battles ahead, Hawthorn's major test might actually be starting right now.
You can read more of Rohan Connolly's work at FOOTYOLOGY.