ASSISTANT Coach Cameron Bruce says tonight’s heavyweight clash with Sydney is the perfect opportunity for Hawthorn's young midfielders to fire.

The Hawks will be without dual premiership player and four-time best and fairest winner Sam Mitchell in the midfield, after he injured his hamstring against the Saints last Saturday.

Veteran midfielder Brad Sewell will also be missing as he continues to battle a hamstring injury.

That means the Hawks will rely upon youngsters Mitch Hallahan and Will Langford, along with veterans like Shaun Burgoyne and Jordan Lewis to carry the midfield load against a strong Sydney line-up.

Hallahan has played two full games since being the substitute in his AFL debut in Round 5, while Langford has played seven games, including six this season.

Bruce says the opportunity the pair have been crying out for, for over 12 months has finally arrived as the midfield spotlight shines brightly upon them.

“Langford and Hallahan have been waiting around for these types of opportunities and now they’ve finally got consistency in game time and that opportunity,” he told hawthornfc.com.au ahead of the game.

“They’re going to want to perform really well and they’re really hungry to do that.”

But the duo have already impressed this season.

Before missing last week's win over St Kilda with injury, Langford was ranked number two at the Hawks for clearances, averaging 4.2 per game, second for contested possessions and third for tackles.

Hallahan, meanwhile, gathered six disposals and kicked a goal in a quarter when he came on as the sub against Geelong and picked up 20 touches against the Tigers and 18 against the Saints.

He is also has three clearances against the Tigers and four against the Saints.

Bruce says though, that there will also be players with senior experience to step up and fill the void left by Mitchell.

He says Burgoyne and Lewis, who stepped up in his absence to be two of the best afield against the Saints will rise to the challenge again tonight, while Cyril Rioli and Paul Puopolo are among those who can also help out.

“Sam didn’t play for three quarters last week but we still had really good output in the midfield with Burgoyne who played a really good game and Rioli played a really good second half,” he said.

“We’ve still got the depth and the luxury to have a number of guys rolling through their with plenty of senior experience.

“Hopefully we’ve got enough talent there to cope for the loss of Sam.”

After a slow start to the season, Sydney have come into some outstanding form that started with a win over Fremantle at the SCG in Round 5.

They have won their last three games in a row and are on the cusp of the top four with four wins from seven starts.

Bruce says it has been their ability to re-capture their appetite for defence that has sparked their form turnaround.

“What they’ve got back is their pressure around the contest – their tackling and ability to win the contested ball,” he said.

“Sydney for years have prided themselves on those areas and that’s what makes them a good side, so those are the areas we need to be matching if not out-performing.”

But the Hawks won’t be getting too caught up in the strengths of Sydney, given Hawthorn is sitting pretty at six wins and one loss and in good form heading into the clash.

The Hawks have overcome challenges of different types from Brisbane, Essendon, Fremantle, Gold Coast and Richmond to start the season, something Bruce says they have been capable of because of the ability to change mid-game.

With another tough contest expected tonight, Bruce expects the Hawks will need to call on that on-field leadership again.

“We want to play how we play,” he said.

“(But) the beauty of our game is that we can jump in and out of style, so if the game requires fast play, we can take it on and then when players need to, we can slow it down to change momentum.

“No doubt tonight’s game will be one of those where it’ll require us to change speeds and styles and that’s the luxury we’ve got.

“It’s a combination of players and coaches, we’ve got to be able to identify it in the box and get that message across.

“The beauty is we’ve got the players who recognise and can sense the way the game is being played and want to implement a different style.”