THIRTY-TWO players who played in the 2012 Grand Final between Hawthorn and the Sydney Swans will again face off in this year's decider.

Seventeen of those 32 were part of the losing Hawthorn side in 2012 - including Lance Franklin, who will line up against his former side at the MCG on Saturday. 

The Swans will field 15 players who helped the club claim the premiership two years ago, plus the aforementioned Franklin. 

Accordingly, each club will field six players who did not take part in the 2012 Grand Final. 

AFL.com.au takes a look at the fate of the players who will be absent this year, and where a few of the new faces were back then.

Xavier Ellis: After an injury-blighted end to his time at Hawthorn, the 2008 premiership player is now plying his trade at West Coast, where he managed 17 games in 2014.

Lance Franklin: Shocked the football world when he defected to the Sydney Swans at the end of last season. No longer a friend, but a foe to his former teammates in brown and gold. 

Shane Savage: Sent to St Kilda after the 2013 season as part of the trade deal that saw Ben McEvoy wind up at Waverley. 

Ryan Schoenmakers: Recovered from a knee reconstruction to play 15 games in 2014 but failed to make the Grand Final team after falling behind Brian Lake and Josh Gibson in the backline pecking order. Played in the VFL Grand Final for Box Hill.

Brad Sewell: The veteran midfielder is weighing up his future after being dropped for the preliminary final and subsequently overlooked for the Grand Final side. 

Clinton Young: Left Hawthorn after the 2012 Grand Final to join Collingwood. Has struggled to find fitness and consistent form at the Magpies, playing 21 games in his two seasons there.

Jude Bolton: Retired at the end of 2013 and now holds a prominent media role.

Alex Johnson: Has not played a senior game since the 2012 premiership and is facing a fourth knee reconstruction after three earlier grafts failed to repair an injury suffered in a pre-season game in early 2013.

Martin Mattner: Part of the Swans' assistant coaching team after pulling the pin halfway through the 2013 season due to a degenerative hip injury.

Mitch Morton: The enigmatic Swan retired from the AFL at the end of the 2013 season. Played with Perth Football Club in the WAFL this year.

Shane Mumford: Squeezed out of the Swans' squad to help accommodate Lance Franklin's recruitment. Now the No. 1 ruckman at Greater Western Sydney.

Ryan O'Keefe: The 2012 Norm Smith medallist fell out of favour early in the season, playing what proved his final senior game in round four. Drew the curtain on an illustrious career earlier this week.

Lewis Roberts-Thomson: The two-time premiership winning Swan retired in August after his body failed to hold up in his 12th AFL season.

Taylor Duryea: The fifth-round selection (No. 69 overall) in the 2009 NAB AFL Draft had to bide his time, not managing a senior game until round three, 2013 in his fourth season at Hawthorn.

Bradley Hill: The Hawk speedster managed five games in his debut season in 2012 after being drafted with pick No.33 in the 2011 NAB AFL Draft.

Brian Lake: Played 20 games in his last season at the Western Bulldogs. Was a shock trade to the Hawks at the end of the 2012 season.

Will Langford: Did not play a senior game in his first two seasons at the club after being drafted as a NSW scholarship rookie at the end of 2010. Impressed with his toughness and application to the task at Box Hill.

Ben McEvoy: Mid-season knee injury restricted him to 16 games as St Kilda narrowly missed the finals in its first season under new coach Scott Watters. Continued to develop as one of the Saints' next-generation leaders.

Matt Spangher: The versatile defender was in the last of his two seasons at the Swans and failed to play a senior game in 2012. Was traded to the Hawks at the end of the season.

Harry Cunningham: Played the first game of the 2012 season before being dropped the very next week. Sent back to the NEAFL where he was able to hone his game.

Dane Rampe: The dashing defender played for the UNSW-Eastern Suburbs Bulldogs in the Sydney AFL, winning the Phelan Medal for the league's best and fairest in 2012. Rookied by the Swans at the end of that season and has played 47 of a possible 49 games since. 

Gary Rohan: Broke his leg in horrific fashion in round four of the 2012 season, ruling him out for the rest of the year.

Kurt Tippett: Played with Adelaide through 2012 with intense speculation he would return home to Queensland. Played in the Crows' preliminary final loss to Hawthorn, before being caught up in a salary cap scandal ahead of his trade to the Swans at the end of the season.