WESTERN Bulldogs coach Paul Groves has been treating his now-suspended captain Katie Brennan as an injured player pushing for selection, in an attempt to normalise the situation for her teammates ahead of Saturday’s NAB AFL Women's Grand Final.

Brennan's failed bid at the AFL Appeals Board on Thursday night saw her two-match suspension for rough conduct upheld, meaning the star forward will miss the Grand Final.

Groves, speaking at the pre-Grand Final press conference, alongside acting-captain Ellie Blackburn and Brisbane coach Craig Starcevich and skipper Emma Zielke, said his players had handled the situation well.

"We had a really open and honest meeting about it on Wednesday night," Groves said.

"I reiterated to them I was treating it as if we've had a player who's pulled up pretty sore from last week, and we're now giving her every opportunity, which would include [Friday's] session to potentially be passed fit to play.

"The club's done amazing work to try and get her to be available to play, then Katie made the decision last night that in the best interests of the team that we wouldn't take it any further today."

It's safe to say Groves has had a busy week, with partner Sarah giving birth to baby Ella on Tuesday morning, meaning he was absent when Brennan faced the AFL Tribunal on Tuesday night.

"I'll paint the picture of where I was on [Tuesday night]. I was holding a baby that was 10 hours old in my hands and going through a Twitter feed to try and find out as quickly as I could [if Brennan would escape penalty]," he said.

"So, I haven't been privy to those conversations. My sole focus is to make sure the wellbeing of every one of my 30 players is at the forefront.

"That includes the mental and emotional wellbeing, so I just reached out to ‘KB’ straight after. Then that flows into Kirsten [McLeod, Brennan's replacement], who will play this week."

Small forward McLeod isn't exactly a like-for-like replacement, but she had been in good form before missing last week's win over Melbourne due to hamstring soreness, kicking two goals against Greater Western Sydney in round six.

"She's had a really interrupted season this year. She kicked 4.8 last year and was probably one of the premier small forwards in the competition. So [we’re] really excited to bring her back in," Groves said.

"The door opens for her … she's clearly excited to be playing in an AFLW Grand Final, and she'll be really dangerous in that forward line."

Blackburn, who has captained the Dogs in more games than the injury-plagued Brennan, played down the impact the Brennan case has had on the rest of the players.

"We've supported Katie throughout the season. She's had to deal with some pretty bad things this year, obviously getting injured again. We've adapted to it," Blackburn said.

"We've been well aware of everything that's happened this week, but our main focus, and even Katie has mentioned, is that we've still got to focus on Saturday.

"She'll lead the team off the field. She's been great at that all year. She offers great advice to the girls. Whoever steps up and plays for us will be playing their role."