Will GWS Giants bounce back or can West Coast shock once again

THE Advertiser’s Chief Football Writer Michelangelo Rucci looks at the AFL semi-final match-up between the struggling Giants and the soaring Eagles.

THE Advertiser’s Chief Football Writer Michelangelo Rucci looks at the AFL semi-final match-up between the struggling Giants and the soaring Eagles.

SEMI-FINAL

GWS v WEST COAST

Spotless Stadium, Saturday, 6.55pm

GWS GIANTS

1. DO THE GIANTS STAND TALL?

PERHAPS Greater Western Sydney does need another AFL finals series - as Brisbane did in 1999 and 2000 before the three-peat from 2001-2003 - to sort through how to best combine all the unquestionable talent into a team, perhaps a premiership team.

CAN CATS STOP HIGH-FLYING SWANS

There is still the knock on the Giants that there is a collection of outstanding players but not a telling blend of “role players” who combine to create an effective team.

How the Giants respond to this lesson delivered so strongly by the Crows in the qualifying finals will underline where GWS is in the chase for its first AFL flag after six years in the big league.

It just seems there is another year of tough learning to be done in west Sydney.

Shannon Hurn of the Eagles tackles Nathan Wilson of the Giants.

2. WILL STEVIE J PLAY?

LEON Cameron’s preference for a “Land of the Giants” attack with Jeremy Cameron, Rory Lobb, Jonathon Patton and Harrison Himmelberg did not deliver at the Adelaide Oval in Thursday night’s 36-point loss to Adelaide in the qualifying final.

Jeremy Cameron’s hamstring injury and the need to unsettle the West Coast defence puts veteran forward Steve Johnson back in the selection mix.

The master of opportunism around the goalface certainly is refreshed, but time off the AFL fields does not bring speed back into his legs.

He will need to be sharp in his read of the play if his recall is not to become tagged as another example of how some careers are dragged to a lame finale.

MEDICAL ROOM

S. Mumford (ankle) test

J. Cameron (hamstring) 3 weeks

M. Buntine (knee) season

A. Kennedy (knee) season

WEST COAST

1. CAN THE EAGLES TRAVEL?

HAVING thrived again at their “home away from home” at Adelaide Oval (four wins from four games against Port Adelaide and 6-1 overall), West Coast once again has to overcome the “travel” question.

Taking away the Adelaide Oval trips, the Eagles this season have a 2-7 win-loss on the road (2-5 in Melbourne), (0-1 in Sydney) and (0-1 in Queensland).

West Coast has played three games at the Showgrounds in west Sydney and won twice.

The last encounter was just a month ago when the Giants needed a strong last quarter to shake off the Eagles - and crack that web-style defence - by 21 points.

2. WHAT’S LEFT?

HISTORY awaits the Eagles. No team has won the follow-up game after making it through the supplementary 10 minutes of an extra-time final.

Just how much is left in those “old legs” in the West Coast midfield with Brownlow Medallist midfielders Sam Mitchell and Matt Priddis?

It would be a remarkable achievement to reach a preliminary final - against Richmond at the MCG - after making the elimination finals on a 0.5 per cent advantage on Melbourne for eighth spot and the semi-finals on a kick after the siren in extra time.

How much more drama can those “old and slow” legs deliver before Mitchell and Priddis take their final bow?

MEDICAL ROOM

N. Naitanui (knee) test

M. Allen (foot) season

S. Butler (shoulder) season

S. Lycett (shoulder) season

D. Venables (toe) season

THE ODDS

MATCH

GWS $1.40

West Coast $3.00

FLAG

GWS $6.50

West Coast $21.00

LAST TIME

GWS Giants 14.14 (98) d West Coast 14.6 (90)

Round 10, Subiaco Oval

GWS Giants 12.9 (81) d WEST COAST 9.6 (60)

Round 22, Spotless Stadium

EARLY CALL

GWS by 28 points