Defender Nick Haynes, key forward Jesse Hogan and young midfielder Tanner Bruhn will line up for the GIANTS in Sunday’s round two clash with Richmond.
All Australian Haynes returns to the GIANTS’ side after recovering from stomach issues that plagued the last month of his pre-season.
He missed the GIANTS’ round one Derby last weekend, playing strongly in a VFL practice match.
Hogan will add firepower to the GIANTS’ attack after ticking off all his training loads following soreness after a practice match in late February.
Bruhn - last week’s unused medi-sub - will move into the 22 for Sunday’s match for the 15th game of his career.
“It’s great to have both Nick and Jesse back into the side,” coach Leon Cameron said.
“They’ve clearly both had interrupted pre-seasons but trained strongly over the past few weeks, performed well in the VFL last Saturday and pulled up well from training on Thursday.
“Nick’s our All Australian defender and as soon as he felt comfortable he could train strongly and perform then we were keen to get him back into the team.
“Jesse’s completed a good block of training now and is ready to go. We didn’t want to push him for round one but he’s fully fit now and excited to get back out there on Sunday.
“Tanner will also come into the side after a strong second pre-season and we’re looking forward to seeing what he can do.”
Sunday’s game against the Tigers will mark inaugural co-captain Callan Ward’s 250th AFL game.
“It’s a wonderful milestone for a wonderful person in Wardy,” Cameron said.
“He really has had an incredible legacy at our football club and that’s continuing to this day. He’s the epitome of the type of player you want to coach; tough, hard and honest.
“He should be proud of all he has, and will continue, to achieve as a GIANT.”
The clash will see Hogan reach his long-awaited 100th AFL game after eight years in the league.
Star midfielder Tim Taranto is also set to play his 100th game.
“It’s great to see both Tim and Jesse reach the 100-game milestone too,” Cameron said.
“They’ve had very different journeys. Tim’s come in and made his mark and evolved into a really important and consistent player for us. He’s already a club champion winner and is now playing a bit of a different role in his team so it’s great to see his development.
“Jesse has had to do it the hard way across three clubs. He’s faced some challenges on and off the field but has still averaged almost two goals a game in that time.
“There’s no doubt he’s a special talent and we’re all keen to see him get his body right and make a consistent impact on the competition like we know he can.”
As named on Thursday evening, star midfielder Jacob Hopper will miss this week’s match, being managed for knee soreness. Matt de Boer and Lachlan Keeffe have been omitted.
The GIANTS take on the Tigers at the MCG on Sunday at 3:20pm, live on 7mate in NSW and the ACT and on Fox Footy and Kayo all around Australia.
