David Peel will pull on an Inverleigh jumper for the first time since 2013 in tomorrow’s mouth-watering meeting with East Geelong at Inverleigh Reserve.
Peel has spent the past decade with Geelong West, where captained the Giants, while also earning VFL selection with North Ballarat.
The Hawks have also handed a debut to Jarvis Miles, who arrived at the club from St Joseph’s in the off-season.
Miles’ father, Dion, played two games for North Melbourne in 1998.
Big man Kad McEwan-Walsh is unavailable, while former Newtown & Chilwell and Ocean player Kieran McNally has entered the 21-day concussion protocol.
The Eagles appear set to go in unchanged from the team that took care of Thomson in Round 2.
Boom Anakie recruit Andrew Boseley has moved to temper external expectations following the club’s fruitful off-season, which landed him, Luke Dahlhaus, and Jay Lever, among others.
The Roos have lost their opening two rounds and face another tough challenge against Werribee Centrals at Anakie Reserve.
Boseley says Anakie will take time to jell after bringing in many new faces.
“We had 14 guys (in) Round 1 pull on the Anakie jumper for the first time,” he said on K rock Football’s Beyond the Boundary podcast.
“And I think we had a couple of new guys come in (in) Round 2.
“All those things you learn through training and playing with a group for a period of time, when you’ve got that high turnover in one team, there is a bit of disconnect.
“But, that’s the challenge we have as a footy club to find that out.
“We’ll get better as every week goes on.”
Anakie will be without star ruck Ajang Kuol Mun after he was recalled to Geelong’s VFL team.
However, former Richmond and Western Bulldogs forward Sam Lloyd will play the first of up to five games for the Roos.
He trains with Anakie most weeks before returning home to Deniliquin to play.
”He does everything right when he’s with us,” Roos coach Jayke Mawson told K rock Football.
“He’s a big part of the club even though he goes home to Deni.”
Brad Carlton will play his first game of 2024 for the Centurions, while Tyson Stephens has been promoted from the under-18s for his first senior match since Round 15 last year.
Veteran Matt Miller (unavailable) and Blake Taylor (hamstring) are both missing.
Playing coach Rhyce Prismall (finger) remains sidelined.
North Geelong will welcome Cameron Bily and Charlie Smith back for its night meeting with Winchelsea at Eastern Reserve.
Noah Penny and Charlie Andrews are out of the team that defeated Anakie last week.
Magpies coach Peter Riccardi says they won’t take the winless Blues lightly.
“We can’t go in there thinking, what we’ve done, we can be satisfied (with) because it’s going to be hard work,” he said.
“We haven’t got the right to do that at this stage.
“We’ve won one game, (and) we’ve won two games in a year.
“But, if we stick to our process, we should be right.”
Dylan Fisher will play his 150th club game for North Geelong.
The Blues are expected to unveil returning junior Cassidy Parish after his request to head home was granted by Grovedale.
Thomson will make at least four changes for its trip to Victoria Park for a meeting with the unbeaten Bannockburn.
Barwon Heads recruit Logan Mitchell is due to have scans today on an Achilles injury.
Midfielder Zach Plant (back), David McLeish (knee) and Darcy Kelly (concussion) will also be sidelined.
They join captain Sam Jacka, Jackson Macleod, Brandon Gardiner, Daniel Freeman, Nick Lynch and Mitch Hodgson on a lengthy injury list at Godfrey Street.
Veteran Chris Scott is among the inclusions.
Bannockburn has named captain Tristan Battaglia in its squad after he missed last week’s win over Winchelsea.
Corio has made the one change for its clash with Bell Post Hill at Shell Oval.
As co-coach Darren Bennett hinted to K rock Football earlier in the week, Aaron Taylor has been promoted from the reserves to replace injured ruck Jack Green (elbow).
At the Panthers, Brody Hecker is in for his first senior game of the season, while the experienced Ben Muir will play his first game since the 2022 finals series.
Veteran Adrian Fantella (soreness) and Brayden Staggard (toe) go out of the team that lost to Inverleigh last week.
Belmont Lions will welcome back recruit Dave Allitt for its twilight meeting with Geelong West at West Oval.
Bailey Trevorrow has been dropped.
Charles Wild and Trent Archer are back for the Giants, with Aaron Hutchison to miss with a quad injury and Stirling Keane omitted.
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