Contracts with Cricket Tasmania could well deprive Launceston of its star pair for the TSLW grand final.
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Both Courtney Webb and Emma Manix-Geeves have been ruled out in favour of Tasmanian cricket trials.
The first of two interstate warm-ups in Canberra will coincide with the women’s football showpiece at UTAS Stadium on September 15.
Launceston will look to defeat Glenorchy in Sunday’s preliminary final to reach back-to-back grand finals.
Coach Alex Gibbins has been left trying to piece together his best 22 for the Blues’ premiership defence.
“It will impact on us because you can always count on Webby to have an impact on the game,” Gibbins said.
“You chuck that on top of losing Daria Bannister, Naomi Celebre, Ebony Barrenger, and this list just goes on. It’s just another hole to fill. They are our top players – our topline game-breakers.
“We can’t keep taking our hits, but we’ve taken another big one [in losing Webb].”
Webb had been forced to juggle AFLW commitments at Carlton last summer with state cricket for Tasmania.
The ex-Hobart Hurricanes rookie has since signed on this season with WBBL club Melbourne Renegades.
Gibbins said the 18-year-old will be hard to replace against quality TSLW rivals.
“We’ll lose that x-factor without Webby,” he said.
“But it does give someone else a chance in a big final.
“We’ll be looking for a like-for-like player to replace her.”
A niggling injury already sidelined Webb for the Blues’ 107-point semi-final mauling of Tigers on Sunday in which small forward Manix-Geeves booted five goals.
Manix-Geeves will keep for Tasmania after Georgia Redmayne was given special dispensation to miss the two games for medical exams.
“It’s out of my hands – cricket is pretty much my job,” Manix-Geeves said.
“I said to Alex at the start of the year, if it came down to it, cricket will always win out.
“Cricket has been my sport and it’s something I could go further in as a career. But it doesn’t make it any easier.”
Launceston is already without Bannister, who ruptured an anterior cruciate ligament in her AFLW debut for Western Bulldogs.