Hawthorn will be aiming to inflict plenty of bruises during Saturday’s grand final, but West Coast plan to hit their opponents where it hurts the most – on the scoreboard.
Advertisement
Schoenmakers replaced Gunston in the side after he was injured in the qualifying final loss to West Coast and is the player most likely to make way if the Hawks’ leading goalkicker is passed fit for the premiership decider against the Eagles.
The Hawks have, as expected, named Luke Hodge despite the captain receiving treatment on his sore right hamstring late in the game against the Dockers.
Hawthorn are set to recall star forward Jack Gunston, who completed a searching fitness test on Monday to prove he has overcome his ankle injury. Ceglar joins Hartung and backman Angus Litherland as the three emergencies for Alastair Clarkson’s team.
Simpson said he had not thought too much about the Eagles’ preparation for the Grand Final but he did say it would be good to have a training run on the MCG.
“Hopefully we don’t lose another one this year”. “There’s other blokes that have played a number of games this year and might not be able to make this team… we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. The thing with us is we’ve always said that squads win premierships”.
“Unfortunately for Billy, he’s played a lot of sub (substitute) over the last five or six weeks and that’s probably gone against him”.
Twenty-one Hawthorn players will enter with Grand Final experience, with first-year Hawk James Frawley making his Grand Final debut.
The decision would be easier if the Eagles had a recognised shut-down man. Scott Selwood is one such player, who actually played in the qualifying final before being dropped last week.
Given the forecast heat on Saturday, it remains to be seen how big a risk Hawthorn are taking by leaving out Hartung’s pace and run.
But Allan Pianta, 67, who has camped out at the MCG since Thursday morning and has not missed an AFL/VFL grand final in 53 years, based his tip on the more traditional method of past form, rather than the penguins.
Will the Hawks win their third consecutive premiership or can the Eagles swoop in to deny history?
Chick told the Herald Sun that he and former teammates Daniel Kerr and Ben Cousins took massive doses of asthma drug prednisone in a pattern experts describe as freakish and inappropriate.
It’s interesting, West Coast’s coach Adam Simpson said this week that he planned a few levity in the build-up to the preliminary final to ease the tension at his club.
Advertisement
“The club and its medical staff are deeply offended by these allegations and will discuss internally an appropriate course of action”.
