HAWTHORN Coach Alastair Clarkson says the Hawks are focused on battling Carlton as a whole - not just superstar midfielder Chris Judd.
Carlton coach Brett Ratten revealed that Judd was carrying an injury after the Blues’ loss to West Coast in Round 12, but Clarkson says the focus is on the 21 players alongside the Carlton skipper.
“We don’t focus too much on one particular player,” Clarkson said at the Ricoh Centre on Thursday.
“We know that he’s an outstanding footballer but they’ve got 21 others in their side that we need to focus on as well.
“How Chris is feeling, and how he performs for Carlton is immaterial to us in the sense.
“We need to worry about the whole Carlton side and the manner in which they move the footy, that’s what we’ll be trying to focus on.”
The Club expects Jordan Lewis (suspension) and Brendan Whitecross (hip injury) to make their return to the side for Friday night’s clash.
Clarkson says that their addition will strengthen the side as the Club ramps up its preparation for the second half of the season.
“We’ve been a lot better the last couple of games we’ve played,” he said.
“We get Jordan Lewis and Brendan Whitecross back into the side which will strengthen our side a bit further.
“We’re hopefully getting close to some good form but we know we’ve got a lot of work to do.”
Lewis missed the last two matches through suspension, and despite not having played senior football for three weeks, Clarkson said his ability to participate in training will assist in his return.
“He’s had a pretty decent freshen up, he’s trained particularly hard and he’ll be raring to go tomorrow night,” he said.
Defender Stephen Gilham is still considered a key player for the Hawks, with Clarkson revealing that the defender has been troubled by knee soreness.
Clarkson says though, that the 27-year-old is still an important player for the Hawks, despite managing just three matches so far this season.
“He’s a pretty important player for us,” he said.
“He’s been a great contributor to our footy club for a long period of time.
“If we need to go to Gilly at any stage in the second half of the year, we’d be confident that he one, could do the job and two, have the confidence of his teammates that he can make a good contribution for us.”
Kate Salemme is a member of Hawthorn Football Club’s Digital media team reporting exclusively for hawthornfc.com.au from the Ricoh Centre
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Check out the mid-season review of Hawthorn's midfielders in Dream Team. Read how the defenders have fared in Dream Team so far in season 2012.
