At six wins and two losses, the Cats are sitting comfortably in fourth position, but there's always room for improvement according to the key-forward.
"We feel that we haven't been playing our best footy," Hawkins said on Wednesday.
"We're always, as a club, looking to improve whether we win or lose. So it is a big test for us."
Its an even bigger test for the travelling team, coming up against a side that's won 51 of its last 54 games a herculean task.
Past history means nothing in the heat of battle on Friday night though.
"They're a hard-running side, they're exciting to watch, so we're going to need to be at our best to get over the top of them," Hawkins said of the Kangaroos.
No Victorian team has won coming back from Perth this year. Off a six-day break Geelong won't be making excuses.
"It's a big trip and … it probably doesn't make it easy, but we've got a routine that we think works really well for us.
"We've had our main training session today, have trained really strongly, and the squad looks ready to go.
"So we've recovered well, and so far we seem to be preparing pretty well for the game.
"We're excited for the game, excited for the test. It's a big three- or four-week block for us coming off the bye, so we're looking forward to it."
Hawkins could resume hostilities with Scott Thompson, but his preparation won't be focused solely on the All-Australian defender.
"I usually get Scotty when we play against the Roos. I had a bit of (Joel) Tippett in the pre-season, but I think their depth is pretty good down back in terms of tall defenders," he added.
"Lachie Hansen's there as well who is a really talented player. We've seen him this year and for the last few years... the ability of their (the Kangaroos') big guys to be able to read the ball coming in is a huge asset of theirs."
Hawkins has booted 21 goals in eight games, hitting the scoreboard in all but one outing.
