Hawthorn has announced its Qualifying Final team set to face the Tigers, with three big names returning to the fold.
James Sicily will play his first game since Round 17, having overcome the scaphoid injury that kept him sidelined for the last six weeks, while James Frawley also returns after missing Round 23 with back soreness.
“We’re fortunate that we’ve got a couple of players returning from injury on the eve of finals,” GM-Football Graham Wright said.
“Sicily has been through a solid training block and he’s as eager as ever to get back out there with his teammates.
“He and Frawley will give us some greater depth and versatility in our back half, which is really important given the strength of Richmond’s forward line.”
The Hawks have opted for two ruckmen, with Jonathon Ceglar named to share the tap work with fellow big man Ben McEvoy – a combination that has paid dividends since Ceglar returned from a knee reconstruction earlier this year.
“We’ve gone in with two ruckmen for the majority of contests in the second half of the season, and it’s seemed to work quite well for us,” Wright said.
“Cegs will be able to provide another marking target when resting up forward, which again offers valuable depth to our line up.”
The Hawks will face the Tigers at 7.20pm on Thursday night, officially kicking off the 2018 finals series.
The two sides have met just once this year; a Round 3 battle that saw the Tigers emerge 13-point victors.
For all finals information, visit our finals hub.
Super match preview: Hawks v Tigers
QUALIFYING FINAL TEAM
Richmond v Hawthorn
Thursday 6th Sept, 7.20pm
MCG
B: Jarman Impey, Ben Stratton, James Sicily
HB: Ricky Henderson, James Frawley, Blake Hardwick
C: Jack Gunston, Tom Mitchell, Shaun Burgoyne
HF: Ryan Burton, Jarryd Roughead, Isaac Smith
F: Luke Breust, Ben McEvoy, Paul Puopolo
R: Jonathon Ceglar, Jaeger O’Meara, James Worpel
INT: Ryan Schoenmakers, Harry Morrison, Liam Shiels, Conor Nash
Emer: Daniel Howe, David Mirra, Teia Miles, Brendan Whitecross
IN: James Sicily, James Frawley, Jonathon Ceglar
OUT: Teia Miles (omitted), Kaiden Brand (omitted), David Mirra (omitted)
