Flag favouritism awaits winner
INVERLEIGH coach Mark McDowell says the tag of premiership favourite will be on the line when his beefed-up side meets a resurgent Winchelsea tomorrow.
As the Hawks prepare to welcome back a host of stars for the one-versus-two clash at Eastern Reserve, McDowell said the winner would deservedly be a frontrunner for the flag.
“If they beat us they are genuine … very genuine,” McDowell said.
“I know our boys are looking forward to it.
“Other than the Bell Post Hill game we’ve won fairly convincingly, so we’re ready for the contest and Winch will be as well.”
The Hawks have regained a raft of talent, with Jason Burke (calf soreness), Toby Manganelli (corkie), Robbie Logue (thumb), Michael Grozdanovski (bursitis), Casey Meehan (shoulder) and Jack Fiolet (work commitments) returning against the Blues.
And McDowell is adamant his side will have no excuses, despite the absence of star spearhead Jak Kennedy-Hunt with a quad injury.
“We’ve got a very strong side,” McDowell said.
“We’ll be a lot stronger this week than we were last week. We’ve got a couple more to come back in as well.
“Jak most likely won’t play and we’ll get Mitch Elford back in a few weeks. Other than that, it’s a full list.
“Potentially we could be just a couple of players off a full-strength team.”
The Blues have emerged as a contender on the back of an eight-game winning streak and McDowell has identified their leg-speed as an area of concern.
“I think they’re a pretty quick side, they use the ball really well and they’re playing with a lot of momentum at the moment,” he said.
“They’re going to be tough to beat and they’ve got the score on the board. They’ve decisively beaten Thomson and Bell Post Hill, so it’s a big challenge ahead.
“They’ve got some really competent players in Heath Walsh, who is playing on ball. He’s causing a fair bit of damage and he’s really quick, really skilful.
“Joe Fama is really explosive, has good skills and is really strong, so he’s a damaging player. Will Ford, their full forward, is still a developing player but he’s a good size and he’s quick on the lead. If he gets good entry he’ll be hard to stop and Alex Gubbins is solid off half back. He’s the player that creates the rebound for them.
“And if you turn the ball over, like Bell Post Hill did, they will make you pay.”
With top spot at stake, McDowell believes pressure is the key to unravelling the Blues.
“Their game against Bell Post Hill was really good,” McDowell said.
“They played four consistent quarters, they kicked accurately, moved the ball well, didn’t turn it over too much but we’re not sure Bell Post Hill put enough pressure on them that day.
“That’s what we’re looking at. We plan on bringing plenty of pressure and hopefully that might slow them down a bit.”