After a slow beginning, Hawthorn finally started to find their run in the second half and finished off with a nine-goal blitzkrieg in the final quarter to totally destroy Brisbane.

Now I finally understand why Andrew Demetriou forsook the AFL's 150th anniversary celebrations to go to the opening ceremony.

It's only fair with Aussie rules finally being admitted to the Games.

But I digress.

Buddy Franklin, the perfect specimen of a Greek Adonis if ever there was one, finished off with a lazy six.

At one stage, commentator Tim Lane described him as the "Eighth Wonder of the World".

For some reason the number eight is synonymous with these Olympics.

They kicked off on the eighth day of the eighth month of the eighth year (of the millennium).

Also, IOC president Jacques Rogge has an entourage that smile showing only eight teeth and follow exactly eight paces behind him. Pretty cool huh!

I think it might have something to do with that old pirate saying for gold, "pieces of eight, pieces of eight".

The number eight even popped up in a DVD I watched this morning, The Forbidden Kingdom, where Jackie Chan plays a drunken immortal, who was one of the eight immortals. Yeah, freaked me out too!

Fittingly, Jackie quoted Hawthorn deity John Kennedy Snr, "Don't think, do!"

Hopefully it is an omen that The Mighty Hawks will be climbing the podium in Beijing.

Oh, and the Iraqi team got off to a flier today.

Haidar Nozad and Hussein Jebur stormed to fifth in their heat of the men's double sculls and have earned a spot in Monday's repechage.

Come on lads, do your Chairman proud!