AS defender Josh Gibson prepares to play in his first grand final, the gritty defender says he’s grateful for the chance to play in the biggest game of the year.
The 28-year-old has played in two preliminary final losses - last year’s nail-biting loss to Collingwood and in 2007, the Kangaroos fell short against the Power.
With those losses in mind on Saturday, Gibson says he is grateful that he now has the opportunity to live his dream.
“It’s a pretty special feeling to be getting the chance to play in the granny,” he said at the Ricoh Centre on Tuesday.
“I’ve had a couple of prelim losses, and I guess, probably the early ones, especially the first one at North, you don’t realise how often you get a chance to play in them.
“I’m definitely grateful that we won on the weekend and now can relax a little bit and enjoy the week.”
The confident defender says he has already enlisted the help of teammates who had the privilege of playing in the 2008 grand final for tips on how to handle the week.
To date, he has learnt that they key is to enjoy the week’s festivities, but when it’s time to prepare for the match, focus like he has done all season.
“I’ve spoken to some of the guys that have been there before, just asking them for tips on how to go about the week,” he said.
“You want to enjoy the week, but when it gets down to training time, keep that similar and focus on the things you have all year.
“Just try and keep the normal preparation for a game.”
With Gibson one of the best zoning defenders in the competition, the Swans could choose to use his man as a decoy on Saturday in the grand final.
The Crows used the tactic effectively in the opening half of Saturday’s preliminary final, using full forward Taylor Walker to drag Gibson away from the full forward line, where Kurt Tippett had the better of Ryan Schoenmakers.
Gibson says he won’t be preoccupied with the tactics of the Swans, and instead will back his judgment.
“You want to be able to chop out for your teammates whenever you can, and that’s not just me that goes for anyone in the side,” he said.
“It’s always nerve-wracking when you leave your man but you have to back your judgment and make sure that if you get there, that you impact so it doesn’t fall to your man.
“Everyone has got the way they want to go about it and as do we.
“We’ll wait and see how that pans out but for me, I’m a defender so my focus will be on beating my opponent.”
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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