Josh Kelly and Sam Reid are confirmed starters for the GIANTS’ clash with the Demons on Sunday at the MCG, while defender Zac Williams will spend another week in the NEAFL.
Kelly (concussion) and Reid (hamstring) return to the GIANTS side for Ryan Griffen (hamstring) and Brent Daniels (omitted).
“Having a couple of guys come back who missed last week is no doubt a positive,” said coach Leon Cameron.
“Josh has trained well, he plays well at the MCG and there’s no doubt he looks forward to getting back into the swing of things after missing a match.”
Phil Davis looks set to play after recovering from multiple corks that restricted him in last week’s loss to the Swans.
“He had a pretty good day yesterday and has pulled up well today, so we’ll give him every opportunity to play,” Cameron said.
"We know how vital he is to us and he's progressing in the right manner, and it's good that our captain can constantly get up and play under duress.”
Cameron resisted the temptation to bring Williams back into the senior side with the defender to line up for his second game in the NEAFL after rupturing his achilles in the pre-season.
However, the coach said it might be a different story come the GIANTS’ first final in a fortnight’s time.
"I'll have no hesitation in bringing him in," he said.
"He'll play (reserves) again this week and then gets another couple of weeks of good training in.
"Six months is a long time out of footy and as much as I'd love to see him running around at the MCG, it's a more conservative approach.”
The GIANTS take on the Demons at the MCG on Sunday at 3:20pm with the winner of this match to most likely earn themselves a home elimination final.
"We know the ramifications of this game, so we just need to play the full 120 minutes, like we had done prior to the weekend for a couple of months," Cameron said.
"We clearly let ourselves down against the Swans, and Melbourne have been a fantastic side all year and have been in a lot of games.
"That’s the sign of a very good team.
"The Demons are coming, they want a home final and we want a home final, so the finals have started early."
The GIANTS will have full coverage of the 2018 finals series post-match on gwsgiants.com.au.
Melbourne v GIANTS
Sunday, August 26 at 3:20pm
MCG
FB: Jeremy Finlayson, Phil Davis, Adam Tomlinson
HB: Adam Kennedy, Nick Haynes, Harry Perryman
C: Lachie Whitfield, Callan Ward, Jacob Hopper
HF: Sam Reid, Jeremy Cameron, Aiden Bonar
FF: Zac Langdon, Harry Himmelberg, Josh Kelly
RR: Rory Lobb, Stephen Coniglio, Dylan Shiel
Interchange: Daniel Lloyd, Lachlan Keeffe, Matt Buntine, Tim Taranto
In: Josh Kelly, Sam Reid
Out: Ryan Griffen (hamstring), Brent Daniels (omitted)
Emergencies: Brent Daniels, Isaac Cumming, Dylan Buckley, Zac Williams
