The final quarter of Geelong and Hawthorn’s Easter Monday clash was about to begin when drama unfolded.

With the Melbourne weather having threatened to impact proceedings throughout the afternoon, the heavens opened during the third term as a downpour turned the match into a scrap, before the arrival of lightning forced the game to be suspended just before play was set to resume.

“We’re going to a stopped game with lightning – off to your rooms,” umpire Nick Foot instructed Cats and Hawks players, while a message appeared on the MCG screens urging patrons to find shelter.

AFL rules state a lightning-forced delay to play requires a minimum 20-minute waiting period, with play able to be suspended for up to an hour before the match is called off.

As the match was past half time before being halted, a failure to resume play will allow the AFL ‘discretion’ to award Geelong the win, as they were ahead at half time.

It’s the second time in recent memory lightning has delayed a game, with a Melbourne-West Coast match in 2021 stopped midway through the final quarter due to lightning around Optus Stadium in Perth.

A similar circumstance saw a Sydney-GWS match in 2024 have an extended quarter time break, while another delay occurred in early 2023 when Brisbane and Melbourne were forced into the rooms at the Gabba when the lights famously went out.

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