JAKE Stringer will play his first game for Greater Western Sydney and he is set to be joined by star goalkicker Jesse Hogan for the blockbuster clash against Hawthorn.
Stringer will slot into the Giants side for Saturday night's match in Launceston after overcoming illness and a low-grade hamstring strain picked up in the pre-season.
It will be the forward's first match at AFL level since his final game for Essendon last August.
Stringer had played all 23 games for the Bombers, kicking 42 goals last season.
Reigning Coleman medallist Hogan is also poised to make his return from a pre-season injury, having been ruled out of the Giants' opening two wins over Collingwood and Melbourne after breaking his thumb.
The forward duo completed training on Thursday, with coach Adam Kingsley confident Hogan would also be cleared to play.
Stringer's selection comes after Kingsley had considered easing the 30-year-old back through the VFL.
Both Hogan and Stringer were able to complete training on Thursday, with Kingsley confident the duo would be cleared to play this weekend.
Still, Kingsley feels no need to rush Stringer back into action.
"There's probably an assumption that he (Stringer) comes straight in - I'm not sure that that's necessarily true," Kingsley said on Thursday.
"We need to assess what he's capable of, whether we think he's capable of playing how we expect, whether he's capable of playing a full AFL game given he hasn't played for a while.
"It's been a month since he played for us, and even that was 15 minutes of a VFL session.
"Whether we think Jake can tick all those boxes and help us win - well, if we think he can, then we'll pick him.
"If we think he can't, then he'll probably come back through the VFL."
Ruck Kieren Briggs (concussion) is a chance of returning to the side for Saturday night's match in Launceston.
Jake Riccardi, Harvey Thomas, Joe Fonti and Toby McMullin are also eligible to play after serving two-match suspensions, but Kingsley ruled out a massive overhaul to his line-up.
"I wouldn't expect to see those guys come straight into the team - they haven't played for three weeks either," Kingsley said.
"We need to reward the players that have been getting the jobs done thus far, and probably see all those boys (Riccardi, Thomas, Fonti, McMullin) come back through the VFL."
Both the Giants (2-0) and the Hawks (3-0) enter the round-three fixture undefeated.
GWS has only played one game at UTAS Stadium under Kingsley, losing by six points to Hawthorn in a close contest last season.
The Giants settled for a 97-point draw against the Hawks in their last visit to the Tasmanian venue in 2017.
Admitting similarities between their high-octane attacking style of play, Kingsley expects another arm wrestle.
GWS got on top in their most recent meeting in round 21 last year by two points thanks to a late goal by midfielder Tom Green in Canberra.
"We respect the hell out of them. We know we're going to be in for a tough match," Kingsley said.
"If you were to compare forward line, midfield and defence, it'd be pretty similar in terms of the types of players they have back there, certainly the quality.
"We're two quite similar teams, and that's why it promises to be a great match early in the season."
