Pair back as Warriors look to win and stay in promotion hunt

NORTH Geelong will regain pivotal players Darius Madison and Ryan Oppermann for tomorrow’s away clash against Werribee in what is shaping as its penultimate match of the season unless other results go their way.

Madison (suspension) and Oppermann (injury) are crucial inclusions for North, which needs to win its last two matches if it is any chance of finishing above St Albans and Moreland in second spot and secure a promotion playoff match.

Coach James Coutts admitted his side missed the influence of the dynamic attacking duo in last week’s win over Sunshine George Cross, despite the heroic second half come back.

“We have Darius coming back in and Oppy fully fit. I think we missed those two last week with their quality and energy,” Coutts said.

“Darius knows he has a point to prove after the disappointment with his red card against the (Moreland) Zebras.”

Oppermann in particular was missed last week as the Georgies took control of the midfield battle, taking advantage of numerous Warriors errors and turnovers.

“His (Oppermann) game intelligence is something you don’t see as much, he’s got the energy and an engine to get up and down,” Coutts said.

“He’s going to be a big part of the plan for me. I rate him very highly.

“For the way I want to play, I see him as a massive part of the middle of the park for us.”

Michael Anderson will miss tomorrow’s game due to suspension, with Oppermann the obvious replacement while Dominic Marafioti may make way upfront for Madison.

Coutts’ style of play for North has slowly filtered into the dynamics of the group in the past few fixtures and a shift in tempo has been evident. A game-style built around patience and control wasn’t executed as proficiently as Coutts would have liked in last week’s first half but the playing-coach is confident the team is building towards the style he wants to see.

“Over the last 12 weeks we’ve tried to implement a style and a way of playing that is hard,” he said.

“It requires a high work ethic, high intensity, a high level of intelligence but it’s very difficult coming halfway through a season and embedding a style of play that might be different to what previously was there.”

North will no doubt be checking the scores in the corresponding Sunday fixture between St Albans and Altona. The Saints just need a draw to knock the Warriors out of the promotion bout.

Coutts said he was hopeful Altona could keep North’s season alive going into the final weekend of matches.