MIDFIELD and strategy coach George Stone says the Demons are eager to test youngster Viv Michie up against an outstanding Hawthorn team, hence his recall for Saturday’s clash at the MCG.
Michie, who is set to play his third match for the Demons and fourth AFL game, after playing one with Fremantle last year, has built some strong form at VFL level.
After playing the opening two matches of the season, Michie suffered a broken jaw and has had to bide his time with the Scorpions. But Stone said Michie had earned his recall.
“We’ve brought back in Viv Michie for a number of reasons,” he told Dee TV.
“We really want to get him in against some good midfielders and have a look at him. He’s been in good form at Casey and it’s exciting for him.
“We’ve brought Dom Barry back in and Matty Jones back in to give us some outside run. We’re going back to the MCG and we figure we need some outside run and we look forward to seeing them play.
“Crossy’s straight back in and that’s a good sign for him. He’s a quality player and he really looks after himself, so we haven’t got any problems bringing Crossy back in. He’s a valuable player for us and gives us experience around the contest, so we look forward to him playing well again.”
Stone said “Monday and Tuesday were fairly long days” but plenty was gained from the reviews of last round’s disappointing loss to the Brisbane Lions at Etihad Stadium.
“The players actually scrutinised the game themselves. We normally knock that over on a Monday, but this week it’s taken us two days,” he said.
“We’ve had a good look at it and tried to rectify a few things and now we’re trying to move on to playing Hawthorn.”
Stone said the Demons were coming up against “if not the best midfield, then equal to Sydney’s midfield” this round and that Hawthorn was a “big challenge”.
“They’re in a stage where they’re preparing for a finals series and most of their players will want to play well to stay in the side in the finals,” he said.
“They’re going to be primed and ready to go. But we feel coming off a game against Brisbane that wasn’t good that this is a great opportunity for us to bounce back and play well against a good side.
“There is a lot to be gotten out of the game at this stage as well, but I know Hawthorn will be in a different mindset preparing for finals as well.”
