Clarence skipper on deck

CLARENCE will regain captain courageous Brady Jones for the Roos’ critical clash with the TSL Tigers at Blundstone Arena on Saturday, but two teenagers may be called up for the Devils.

In a match that could decide whether or not the Roos play finals this season, Jones returns after missing the jarring 70-point loss to Lauderdale on Saturday because of the birth of his son Mac.

Clarence coach Jeromey Webberley said Jones’s return was crucial to Clarence’s chances of beating the team that smacked the Roos by 41 points when they met under lights at the Twin Ovals in Round 7.

“He’s our best clearance winner so we missed him a lot down at Lauderdale,” Webberley said. “Not just for his ability to win a clearance but the damage he does from winning that clearance.

“And also his leadership. He’s been a fantastic leader over a number of years and we’ve got a young group this year so we missed his leadership a lot at the weekend.”

Clarence is two games out of the top five — with fifth spot held by the Tigers — and a loss to the boys in black and yellow this weekend would be nearfatal to the Roos’ chances of playing finals.

“I think we can play finals, so this week is pretty pivotal,” Webberley said. “If the Tigers win then they’ve won four games and we’ve won one.

“From there we’d have to win some games where we’re not going in as favourites.

“We’d have to knock off one of the top three teams, and we’ve had real difficulty when we’ve teams.

“This week is one of those games where, if we want to play finals footy, we need to win. Are we going to worry about the four points? No. It’s more process-driven and what we believe we can do to give us the best chance to win.

“But the reality is this game is pretty big for our season.”

Webberley said Clarence’s future laid squarely on its youth. “We are going to continue to invest games into our young brigade, and to continue to improve our game plan and the style of game that will hold up in the finals, when that eventuates,” he said.

“Whether that is this year or 2021, we want to make sure our process and the system we want to play is improving every week.

“At this stage we have been inconsistent with the three phases. It changes from week to week, we differ in each phase. We think that we are moving forward and we are seeing some improvement.”

Clarence teenager Ethan Jackson looks set for a return to the Devils, and potentially Sam Lewis-Johnson as well. played those three