Hawthorn is optimistic one of its key players, Brian Lake, will be fit for Friday night's qualifying finals against Geelong, and is bracing for the Cats to receive a similar boost with the inclusion of Steve Johnson.
Hawks captain Luke Hodge was emboldened by the condition of full-back Lake, who hobbled from the field last Friday night after an apparent hip or groin injury, in the team's recovery session on Sunday.
"I saw 'Lakey' yesterday and he was moving around quite freely," Hodge said on Monday morning.
The burly Lake is considered a vital player to restrict similarly sized Tom Hawkins. The Cats spearhead was well held by Lake when the teams played a fortnight ago. Earlier in the season, however, when Lake was unavailable he thrived, taking 10 marks and kicking five goals.
Hodge said the retention of Lake would be welcome for the MCG final, but stressed the challenge of restricting Hawkins would go beyond simply having Lake to oppose him.
"Obviously Hawkins on Saturday night looked in pretty good form, kicked seven-or-so goals. He's been a big player for them in the past few years in finals games so whether it's 'Lakey' or 'Gibbo' [Josh Gibson] or [someone else], we rely on all defenders to work as a unit and help each other out," the captain said.
"I don't think one person [alone] can stop Hawkins. It's probably a team unit that's going to help, and that starts in the midfield and the boys in the back line."
Coach Alastair Clarkson said he had yet to seriously ponder what line-up changes he expected Geelong to make. He said his overriding mindset would be to "plan for their best - that's in the way they play and also the way they pick their side".
"We expect that Stevie will probably be there," he said, in reference to the mercurial forward-midfielder who has missed the Cats' past three matches due to a 'hot spot' in his foot.
Clarkson downplayed the significance of the clubs having met in round 22, when his Hawks kicked 10 consecutive goals to inspire a 23-point win.
"The draw is the draw . . . that's the way that it's dealt. Last year we played Sydney in the last home-and-away game and again in the following week, so that was even more peculiar than what we're going to face this time," he said.
The coach stressed the importance of Hawthorn playing at its best, "because anything below your best is not going to get it done against the Cats".
"We saw contrasting halves in that game," he said of the round-22 match.
"It was a hard lesson to learn [to fall well behind in the first half], but we responded really well after half-time.
"If we don't play some of our best football we won't continue to progress [in the finals].
Clarkson gave little away in regards to the club's ruck selection plans, whether it would retain mobile forward-ruckman duo David Hale and Jonathon Ceglar or recall off-season St Kilda recruit Ben McEvoy, who has spent the past fortnight in the VFL, other than to say it was arguably an unprecedented situation for the club in recent seasons.
"We haven't really been in the fortunate position to have three guys who have either been fit and available [to play in the ruck] or playing good football," he said.
"[In] Ben's past two weeks in the Box Hill side he's played some really good football, and 'Cegs' [Ceglar] and 'Haley' [Hale] have been playing some good footy at senior level too.
"It will depend on their form - and all three players are in good form, which is good. It will also depend on match-ups, and what the opposition are doing and the balance of our own side."
Clarkson said the Hawks would not have a firm idea on the availability of some of its players under injury clouds, such as Matt Suckling (knee), Ben Stratton (calf) and Brad Hill (corked quad), until a detailed examination of them later on Monday.
But captain Hodge, who was rested for the Hawks' thumping of Collingwood on Friday night, said he would return.
"I copped the hit on a knee a few weeks ago and it was just a little bit grumbly. Did I want to play? Yes. Am I better off now? Yeah, I am," he said.
