SPENDING the week in lockdown together before playing against your twin sister for the first time has meant one thing for Sarah and Jess Hosking – pranks, and lots of them.
Carlton utility Jess hit the ground running when the week's fixture was announced midway through Sarah's game with Richmond on Sunday.
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Jess sent her sister a message: "I'll leave a pair of undies and shorts on your bed in case you're 'crapping dacks' about playing against Carlton".
Sarah retaliated to Jess' text by freezing her accreditation pass and mouth guard in a bowl of water, and Jess followed up by putting both sets of Sarah's training kits in a bag and dumping it in the pool with a kettle-bell to weigh it down.
The latter prank had an extra level of revenge, with Jess claiming Sarah often pinched her training-wear when the pair played together at Carlton
Safe to say, things – as documented on the Hoskings' Instagram accounts – have escalated quickly, but there are ground rules.
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"I've got one up my sleeve that'll probably come out today (Wednesday), it might have involved deep heat and toilet paper, so stay tuned for that," Sarah said.
"We've said it cannot affect performance, but during lockdown, we're taking it in our stride and having a bit of fun with it as well, trying to do what we can while locked in a house together.
"It is exciting, and I'm looking forward to the challenge that we have this week and getting out there and playing the Blues."
The pair are undecided as to whether they will drive to Ikon Park together on Saturday afternoon, which will mark the first time Sarah has come up against Carlton since crossing to Richmond in the Trade Period.
"I probably say each week leading into this round, we were probably giving away a lot of information about our teams because we weren't going to play each other," Jess said.
"Then when it happened, it was like, 'Oh, maybe I shouldn't have told her this player was coming in or did something'.
"There may be a few sneaky helpful hints we've picked up along the way, but lips are sealed this week. I asked 'Sare' how training was last night, and she gave me donuts."
Sarah nominated Jess' agility and "ankle-breaks" as a trait she'd love to take from her sister, while Jess wanted to boost her own already competitive nature by pinching some of Sarah's.
Jess was also keen to add to her tackle tally, with a tongue-in-cheek claim some of her tackles were accredited to Sarah while the duo played together at Carlton.
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Saturday also marks the annual Carlton Respects game, with the Blues players to wear orange socks to help raise awareness of gender equality and subsequently, the prevention of violence against women.
"This is a massive game for us, and we've been lucky enough to hold a Carlton Respects round since year one (2017)," Jess said.
"It's pretty fitting to have it against Richmond as well, having been part of it last year as well and the incredible work Carlton does off the field in the Carlton Respects program.
"It's really sad to see one in three women in Australia experience inequality and violence against women, so it's something we're trying to stamp out."
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