Off the back of one of the "hardest games of footy" he's seen, Hillwood coach Nathan Lowe is upbeat about his side's preliminary final showdown with Longford.
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Overcoming an in-form Rocherlea line-up, a new breed of Tiger now stands in their way as the two meet on Invermay Park.
"We've got the six-day turnaround again so there's been a fair bit of recovery but we got through last week unscathed," he said.
Anticipating a hungry opponent following Longford's Bridgenorth loss, Lowe believes his side's work rate will push them through.
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"We let them get in front in the first quarter last time and then there was no difference between us.
"We have to be up and about from the start to be right with them and be in front when the siren sounds."
The Sharks will be without key goal-kicker Andrew Whitmore who misses through suspension with Lowe looking for a young gun to put their hand up for selection.
As Lowe's side impressed, Longford coach Beau Thorp was disappointed with his side's performance last week following their loss to Bridgenorth.
"Our boys came out and started flat which continued through so we are looking to bounce back hard this week," he said.
Having defeated Saturday's opponents to the tune of 57 and 31 points during the home and away season, Thorp is confident heading into the clash.
"You've got to be [confident] at this time of year. This is our chance to show that we are contenders with a strong performance this week."
Thorp predicts the midfield battle will dictate play with both sides possessing strong forward lines featuring the likes of Jackson Blair and Tom Bennett.
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Josh Partridge
As a sports-mad fan who loves to remain challenged, sports journalism always seemed the path for me and it's allowed me to do things I never thought possible. A keen racquet sports player, I'm experienced in that field, allowing me to do my job at a strong standard.
As a sports-mad fan who loves to remain challenged, sports journalism always seemed the path for me and it's allowed me to do things I never thought possible. A keen racquet sports player, I'm experienced in that field, allowing me to do my job at a strong standard.
