GREATER Western Sydney coach Leon Cameron isn't currently worrying about the make up of Essendon's team for the NAB Challenge match between the clubs on March 13.
Cameron believes the clash with the Bombers will still contribute to a meaningful preparation for the Giants' round one clash with St Kilda, despite uncertainty surrounding exactly who will play in the red and black.
The Bombers can dip into their VFL list or recruit state league players for their trio of pre-season matches, to account for their unavailable players who were at the club in 2012.
The Giants' coach said they would just keep focusing on their own pre-season rather than worry about outside factors.
"We can only control what we can control, and that is preparing for the three games leading up to the round one clash against the Saints," Cameron said on Tuesday at the Giants' community camp.
"Until we actually know what sort of side they serve up in the weeks leading up to the game, we're not going to speculate.
"We feel as though our list is in really good order. You don't want to sustain any injuries but we're in good order and we look forward to getting some good game time into our players."
Cameron’s stance on Essendon appears to have softened, after he last week expressed concern as to whether the Giants would get a competitive hit-out from James Hird’s men.
On Monday night the AFL handed down the rules for the Bombers to participate in the NAB Challenge and premiership season, should their players involved in the 2012 supplements program be suspended.
About 18 of the 34 past and present players handed infraction notices by the ASADA are reportedly still on Essendon’s list.
The Giants are the second club to meet the Dons in the NAB Challenge, after St Kilda plays them on March 7 in Morwell and before Melbourne on March 20 at Etihad Stadium.
Last week, St Kilda coach Alan Richardson and football manager Jamie Cox were emphatic in stating the Saints wanted strong opposition from the embattled club.
Cameron said the Giants expected to be kept informed about what sort of team the Bombers assembled but believed it would still provide adequate preparation for the home and away season.
"The AFL will keep us posted as we lead up to it, no matter who's available," he said.
"We'll deal with it in the lead up to the game.
"We're really looking forward to the NAB Challenge campaign, we're blessed with the draw and we look forward to getting some really good game time under our belt for a number of our players before the season proper."
Giants co-captain Phil Davis said his biggest concern remained the Essendon players who continue to be dragged through the situation three years on.
"They've obviously been through a tough time and more information has come out but to be honest I haven't got a really good grasp on exactly what's happened or what's going to happen," Davis said.
"As Leon said, it's very hard to speculate what kind of team they'll put out there.
"They've still got a lot of very good players that will be available, and they'll get some other good players going around.
"No doubt we'll have a good match and it'll be a really good hit-out leading into round one."
