COACH Luke Monaghan says there's a sense of the pressure valve being released at Eaglehawk this week with the club's Bendigo Football League finals destiny now out of its control.
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The Hawks are in sixth position with two rounds remaining. As well as needing to win at least one more game, the Hawks must now also rely on fifth-placed Kangaroo Flat to stumble if they are to snatch a finals berth from the Roos.
The Hawks travel to Barkers Oval Princes Park to take on Maryborough on Saturday on the back of consecutive losses to Golden Square and Gisborne.
"To be honest, we can release that pressure valve now and just go out and enjoy our footy for the next two weeks and the results will take care of themselves," Monaghan said on Friday.
"If there's an opportunity to play finals, we'll grasp it, but if not then we only have ourselves to blame."
Maryborough promises to be stiff opposition for the Hawks on its home turf.
The Magpies have beaten South Bendigo and Golden Square the past fortnight and pushed the Hawks all the way back in round eight when they hadn't won a game yet.
"They have been in really good form with a few wins on the trot and were obviously good enough to take the scalp of Golden Square, so we're certainly aware that we'll have to play very well for four quarters to get over them," Monaghan said.
The Hawks will use their 46th player for the season on Saturday when Ollie Butler, who has been picked on a wing, plays his first game.
Saturday's game starts at 2.20pm.