The Blues sit in 8th position with 6 wins and 4 losses, while the Cats are precariously perched in 11th position with 5 wins and 5 losses.
The Cats have been given a boost at the selection table though, with the news that small forward Lincoln McCarthy will be making his return from injury.
20-year-old McCarthy played the first 2 AFL matches of 2014 before succumbing to a back injury that has ruled him out ever since. The exciting youngster, who is in his 3rd year at the club, returned to full training a number of week ago and has now been given the green light to resume playing.
McCarthy is one of 14 AFL senior and rookie-listed players named in this week’s side that also includes last week’s travelling emergencies Jesse Stringer and Brad Hartman and AFL omissions Josh Walker and Billie Smedts.
Of the 12 VFL listed players named in the 27-man squad, St Mary’s utility Zak Sherman is the only addition to last week’s squad, while Drysdale defender Stephen Bensted will play his 4th straight match as the Cats 23rd player.
First year players Jake Kolodjashnij, Jarrad Jansen and Darcy Lang will all miss the clash as they are managed through their first season of senior football.
The Carlton aligned Northern Blues, have won there past 3 matches by close margins – Bendigo Gold (5 points), Richmond Tigers (7 points) and Sandringham Zebras (12 points) – and will no doubt be looking to build on the momentum gained from those hard fought victories.
The Blues, have named a strong line up that includes experienced AFL listed players Jeff Garlett, Kane Lucas, Cameron Wood, exciting AFL listed youngsters Nick Graham, Nick Holman and experienced VFL listed players Jack Anthony and Joel Wilkinson. As Carlton do not play until Sunday night against Collingwood they have included the 7 man AFL interchange bench of Lachlan Henderson, Jarrad Waite, Simon White, Dennis Armfield, Zach Tuohy, Blaine Johnson and Andrew McInnes in their squad of 31 players.
It is important to note that the match was originally scheduled to be played at Visy Park but has been moved to Preston City Oval due to the condition of the Visy Park surface. The match will still commence at 1.00pm.
For all Cats fans that cannot get to Preston City Oval on Sunday, the match will be tweeted live, so follow @GeelongVFL on Twitter for all the action including live scores, stats updates and photos.
Bendigo Bank Cats – Round 12 Selected Side
B: Taylor Hunt, Joel Hamling, Nick Bourke
HB: Billie Smedts, Matthew Sully, Jackson Thurlow
C: Jesse Stringer, Jackson Sheringham, Brad Hartman
HF: Lincoln McCarthy, Josh Walker, Jack Hollmer
F: James Toohey, Mitch Brown, Michael Luxford
R: Andrew Banjanin, Jordan Schroder, Dominic Gleeson (c)
I/C: Mitch Herbison, Dane McFarlane, Kieren Paliouras, Cameron Tudor, Daniel Gibbs, Luke Bath, Tom Maas, Zak Sherman, Stephen Bensted (23rd Player).
