For the Hawks, there's an familiar sense of occasion given they have featured in seven consecutive deciders, and in a sense of numerology, have tended to win in even years (2018 and 2020).

For Northern Hawks' Gemma Poke, there is a sense of redemption about this season's grand final. The Hawks' defender led the club into last season's grand final against the Cavs and felt the stinging disappointment of the defeat.

READ MORE: Poke delivers touching speech in wake of grand final defeat

Now in game 149, she may be able to come full circle and taste that winning feeling again.

"When Danni went down with the Achilles injury last year and I stepped into her role as captain and that was a hard thing to lose," Poke said.

"I took a lot of responsibility and feel a lot of weight on my shoulders for not being able to finish the job last year.

"There's a lot of pride and a lot of connections within the team so we're just looking forward to doing it for each other."

Cripps Waratah's venture to the Hawks' nest comes after the Southern side took the long road to the decider. The visitors conquered Kingston in the elimination final before an upset against the Cavaliers in the preliminary final provided their first grand final berth since 2014.

"Hawks have been there for a few years but I don't think we can underestimate ourselves," Cripps co-captain Alex Vinen said.

Cripps coach Aaron Pidgeon added: "It's fantastic we've taken that next step to get in the grand final but really we need to get the job done this week.

"I think we can be really confident, our form last week was fantastic, probably our best game all year. We know we're good enough it's just whether we can put it out there for long enough.

"Our games through the year against Hawks have been strong and we match-up well so we're quietly confident."

In that sense the Cripps conquering of the Silverdome should hold them in good stead as will their past form against the unbeaten Northern Hawks. The Launceston side accounted for Cripps on all three occasions in the roster season but two of those defeats saw the Southern side be in with a chance of victory in the final term.

READ MORE: Cripps sandwich Cavaliers to make grand final

With former Netball Tasmania chief executive and well-respected coach Pidgeon drawing up the plays, 2020 MVP runner-up Vinen leading alongside Ashley Probert-Hill and former Hawk Jamie Symons in the mid-court, there is plenty of talent in the Cripps' camp.

"I think Aaron coming in as head coach this year we've really put a lot more emphasis on our full-court defence and moving the ball a lot quicker than we have in previous years," Probert-Hill said.

Vinen added: "I think we've got match-ups all along the court, everyone in our team when we're playing our best can beat our opponent on the court.

"So it's just moving the ball quickly and I think our defensive end is a really big asset against them, we've just been working so well as a defensive unit and pushing the ball down the court."

Cripps' defensive unit - which suffocated the Cavaliers to one of their lowest scores of the season in the preliminary - will be in for a stern test against the competition's best attacking side in the Hawks.

The Hawks - who are gunning for their 20^th consecutive win and an unbeaten season - scored 1204 points in the roster season or an average of 66 points with the next best being 1003 (Cavaliers).

That is led chiefly by three-time opens MVP Ashlea Mawer (2017, 2020, 2021), who has once again topped the scoring charts as the TNL's best shooter.

"Ash Mawer has been unstoppable this season and Monique Dufty has worked into our team really well but it's going to be a full-team effort," Hawks captain Danni Pickett said.

"I think [Cripps] are really consistent across the whole court, they've got seven really great players ... where I think we may be able to come across them a little bit is in our depth.

"We've got a lot of depth coming off our bench as well and that's been huge for us this year with COVID so hopefully we can use our depth and come over the top."

Hawks' vice-captain Poke points to those connections and seasoned campaigners as a key part of the Hawks' strength as a club. Pickett and Mawer reached game 150 earlier in the roster season - with Poke set to be one back on 149 - while the majority of their main squad has played in a TNL grand final.

"We had a real mental battle the first few grand finals that we were in and we lost two before we actually won one so we had to assess ourselves mentally," she said.

"We're a really strong team knowing that we know how to win and we know how to come back if we are down so it's a comfortable position to be in."

READ MORE: Hawks captain brings up 150 games

That experience has helped Pickett know what to expect on Saturday.

"I think the nerves certainly don't go away, I think in the [seventh] consecutive grand final that might stay the same or get worse," Pickett said.

"[I plan] to do as much as possible so I am not sitting around for too long in the morning but with the afternoon game, hopefully we get a big crowd up there.

"I am really excited to play I feel really lucky to be playing in another grand final."

The Hawks will not underestimate their Southern opponents given their round seven account saw a one-point win to the former and round 21 saw the Launceston side hold onto a five-point lead.

"We just have to be really consistent across four quarters and not let them back in ... for us it is just going to be about consistency," Pickett said.

"If we're getting leads and then we're building on them and if we're chasing [Cripps] then we're chasing hard."

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