The Cats look set to go into the ‘big one’ with a very settled line up.
AFL omission Taylor Hunt has been included in the 27 man squad along with VFL listed regulars Jack Hollmer, Ben Raidme, Andrew Banjanin and Robert Condy.
At this stage AFL elevation Jordan Murdoch is the only outgoing player from the side that defeated Williamstown by 82 points in last week’s Qualifying Final at Port Melbourne.
Tall utility Lachlan Howe has been selected as the 23rd player for the Cats after an impressive display in his first VFL final last weekend. Howe worked in tandem with AFL & VFL premiership ruckman Trent West throughout the day and then went forward to make an impact.
While the VFL Cats will be going for ‘back to back’ premierships after upsetting premiership favourite Port Melbourne in last year’s finale, it will be the first Grand Final appearance for the Box Hill Hawks since they were defeated by Williamstown in the 2003 VFL Grand Final. This outing came just 2 years after they defeated the Werribee Tigers in 2001 to claim their first VFL premiership.
The Cats have named a side that includes 15 VFL premiership players - 14 of which played in last year’s VFL premiership side and Trent West who played in the Cats 2007 VFL triumph.
The top of the ladder Cats and second placed Box Hill Hawks have won through to the decider after winning both their respective Qualifying and Preliminary Finals in convincing fashion.
The two sides only met once this year – way back in Round 3 at Simonds Stadium when the Cats prevailed by 5 points in a dour struggle.
The close encounter followed the trend of recent matches between the two sides, including a thriller in last year’s VFL Semi Final that the Cats won by 13 points after trailing for most of the day.
No eligibility rules will come into play regardless of the result in the AFL match on Friday night, which means both sides will be able to field their strongest possible sides come Sunday afternoon.
The Cats will have to play at their very best if they are to defeat the Damian Carroll coached Box Hill Hawks. They are side that from the outside seem to have no real weakness. The have named line up that includes a host of household names such as AFL premiership player Michael Osborne, Shane Savage, Taylor Duryea, Kyle Cheney and former Geelong midfielder Jonathan Simpkin.
Up forward the Hawks possess plenty of aerial power with former Brisbane Lion Bryce Retzlaff (195cm), Sam Grimley (199cm), Tim O’Brien (193cm) and rotating ruckman Luke Lowden (204cm) and Jonathon Ceglar (204cm) set to give the Geelong defence their greatest challenge this season.
The VFL listed contingent is lead by former Brisbane Lions & Kangaroo hard man Daniel Pratt who as captain of the side, will be hoping to prove his fitness and be selected to play after an injury interrupted season.
Other key VFL listed players include former Collingwood & Gold Coast Suns midfielder Sam Iles, former Suns defender Marc Lock, Liam Tobin, Xavier Murphy and 2011/12 Team of the Year defender David Mirra.
It is a contest that throws up a number of fantastic match ups, none more so than the one between Mitch Hallahan and Jordan Schroder who shared the 2013 J.J Liston Trophy with North Ballarat Rooster Stephen Clifton. The two hard-nosed midfielders look set to go head to head this weekend and it is sure to be a duel worth the price of admission.
The crowd of nearly 15,000 at the VFL Grand Final last year was one of the biggest VFL Grand Final crowds in recent history and this was mainly made up of passionate Geelong supporters who had come along to support the club’s players of the future. This week will be no different with Geelong supporters expected to flock to the game in their thousands and turn Etihad Stadium into a sea of blue and white.
The match kicks of at 2.15pm with the 2013 TAC Cup Grand Final between the Eastern Ranges and Dandenong Stingrays starting at 10.30am. Gates open at 10.00am.
For all those that cannot get to Etihad, the match will be televised on the ABC from 2.00pm and broadcast on SEN 1116, Aussie Digital, Vision Australia Radio, ABC Local Radio, K-Rock, 3WB.
Cats fans will also be able to join in the live chat with Cats VFL writer Nathan Kettle.
Grand Final Admission Details:
Adults: $20.00
Concession: $15.00
Children Under 12: Free
Bendigo Bank Cats Selected Side – 2013 VFL Grand Final
B: Cameron Eardley, Joel Hamling, Jed Bews,
HB: Jackson Sheringham, Mitchell Brown, Taylor Hunt
C: Jackson Thurlow, Troy Selwood (c), Billie Smedts
HF: George Burbury, Josh Walker, Jesse Stringer
F: Ryan Bathie, Shane Kersten, Brad Hartman
R: Trent West, George Horlin-Smith, Jordan Schroder
I/C: Dominic Gleeson, Mark Corrigan, Matthew Sully, Jaxson Barham, Jack Hollmer, Ben Raidme, Andrew Banjanin, Robert Condy, Lachlan Howe (23rd Player).
