Background
It was the third consecutive year in which the two clubs met in the premiership decider, with Hawthorn having won the 1983 VFL Grand Final and Essendon having won the 1984 VFL Grand Final
At the conclusion of the home and away season, Essendon had finished first on the VFL ladder with 19 wins and 3 losses. Hawthorn had finished third (behind Footscray) with 15 wins, 6 losses and a draw.
In the finals series in the lead-up to the game, Hawthorn defeated Footscray in the Qualifying Final before meeting the Bombers in the Second Semi-Final, which Essendon convincingly won by 40 points. The Hawks then met Footscray again in the Preliminary final, which they won by 10 points to advance to the Grand Final. The Bombers advanced straight to the Grand Final on the back of their Second Semi-Final win.
Read more about this topic: 1985 VFL Grand Final
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