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RELATED – STORM PRIMED FOR BACK-TO-BACK FLAG TILT
TWELVE months ago a gutted Eaglehawk coach Josh Bowe sat in the changerooms under the QEO grandstand lamenting a flag opportunity gone begging.
In the space of 30 minutes of football his Hawks had gone from 20 points up at three quarter-time of the BFNL grand final to the anguish of a 32-point loss to Strathfieldsaye.
Bowe’s team, which had finished on top of the ladder and carried a 14-game winning streak into the grand final, had squandered opportunities (7.14) and was ultimately unable to stop the momentum of Strathfieldsaye when the Storm got their tails up in the final term.
Making the bitter pill all the more harder for Bowe to swallow was he knew there was no guarantees the Hawks would get another shot at the flag this year.
However, while the Hawks can’t make amends for last year’s blown premiership chance, they get the opportunity on Saturday to make 2018 a year to remember.
For the second year in a row the Hawks will battle Strathfieldsaye for the BFNL premiership at the Queen Elizabeth Oval.
“Obviously games like last year’s grand final hang around with you for a while. Being a new season we’ve tried not to refer to it too much, but I feel like we can take a lot out of it in terms of the preparation and experience,” Bowe said this week.
“I remember speaking after the game last year that it was going to be a long road back to where we are and a lot of hard work, but I’m really happy that we get another chance at it.
“With such a young list that grand final experience from last year and a sense of what it’s all about, some familiarity to the build-up and the pressure of the game is really important. We feel we’re better prepared off the back of last year.”
Of last year’s losing grand final team, 19 players were named in the Hawks’ extended squad of 25 on Thursday night.
“We’ve really only brought in recruits Dillon Williams, Shaun Knott and Jack Fallon this year and have Oscar Madden and Sam Thompson up from the reserves grand final team of last year,” Bowe said.
“Apart from those guys, everyone played in the grand final last year.”
With a squad of 25 named on Thursday night, the Hawks are keeping the Storm guessing on the final make-up of their grand final team
Among the inclusions into the squad was veteran Matt Gretgrix, who was named at full-forward.
I remember speaking after the game last year that it was going to be a long road back to where we are and a lot of hard work, but I’m really happy that we get another chance at it
- Josh Bowe - Eaglehawk coach
Gretgrix – a dual 2007-08 Eaglehawk premiership player – hasn’t played since injuring his medial during the Hawks’ round 11 win over Castlemaine on June 30.
“At the moment, as far as I know, Gerta is picked in the squad to play. He has ticked all the boxes so far, but will probably have a bit of a fitness test tonight or tomorrow morning,” Hawks’ vice-captain Brodie Collins said at Friday’s grand final press conference.
“But as far as I know he’s expected to get up… we’ll see what happens.”
As well as the selection intrigue around Gretgrix, who kicked four goals in last year’s grand final, the Hawks have also been dealing with an injury concern to ruckman Jonty Neaves.
Neaves suffered a dislocated elbow during the Hawks’ 40-point second semi-final victory over Strathfieldsaye a fortnight ago.
Neaves trained with a heavily strapped elbow at Canterbury Park on Thursday night and is among the seven players on the from interchange.
“Jonty trained no worries last night and will be fine. Obviously, he was a little bit injured in the last game against Strath, but he has come up no worries and I can’t see any reason why he won’t play,” Collins said.
The Hawks, who won their last flag 10 years ago in 2008, head into the grand final carrying a 17-3 record and have built strongly as the season has progressed.
Their last loss came in round 12 by four points to Gisborne at Gardiner Reserve, with the side having since won eight in a row, including its two finals by a combined 152 points.
The Hawks’ 40-point second semi-final win over Strathfieldsaye came a week after they destroyed Kyneton by 112 points in the qualifying final.
“I feel like it has come together really well for us,” Bowe said.
“We had a bit of a flat spot mid-season and the loss down at Gisborne highlighted a few areas we needed to focus on. In terms of our personnel and group, I feel we’re playing the right footy at the right time.”
Like the Hawks, Strathfieldsaye also has a 17-3 record, but two of the Storm’s three defeats have been to Eaglehawk – in the second semi-final and by 25 points in round one.
One of the strengths of the Hawks throughout the season has been their evenness across the ground and a strong blend of youth and experience.
Young players in Gedd Hommelhoff, Neaves, Oscar Madden, Joel Mullen, Lachlan Atherton and Dylan Hanley have continued their development, while the three recruits in Jack Fallon, Shaun Knott, who kicked five goals in the second semi-final, and Dillon Williams have all been valuable additions.
The Hawks’ average spread of 9.3 goalkickers per game is the best in the competition and they have 16 players who have kicked at least 10 this year, led by Sean Williams (59), while defensively they haven’t had more than 14 goals kicked against them.
The Hawks’ defensive unit led by captain Tim Hill, Tyler Miles, Brenton Conforti and Glenn Daly has been one of the most consistent in the competition for several years and comes up against what is the highest-scoring team in the Storm, who average 118 points per game this year.
“We’ve been really even this year. If a couple of blokes are down then we have faith in other players stepping up and doing their bit,” Bowe said.
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