GWS star Kelly rested again from West Coast trip
Greater Western Sydney have again erred on the side of caution with Josh Kelly, leaving the midfield star out of their team to face the West Coast Eagles on Saturday night.
The Giants insist Kelly is not actually injured but has instead been rested for the second straight week out of concerns for his readiness for AFL action - despite coach Leon Cameron declaring on Wednesday that he was "more likely than not" to play this weekend.
The 24-year-old had hip and knee surgery in the off-season and was itching to pull the boots on but Cameron has ultimately taken the advice of his fitness department.
"In the end, the high-performance guys wanted to give him another week," Cameron said. "We've got to listen to that decision. Josh, clearly, wants to play AFL footy as quickly as he possibly can and he'd be disappointed he's not playing this weekend."
It means the same Giants midfield unit that dismantled Essendon in Sunday's season opener will be rolled out against the reigning premiers at Optus Stadium.
Cameron has made two changes to his side, both of them forced. Toby Greene pulled up with a sore calf from the 72-point win over the Bombers and won't be risked while Harry Perryman suffered a punctured lung in a bone-rattling collision with Patrick Ambrose, which will see him ruled out for several weeks.
Nick Haynes and Matt Buntine have been brought in. Defender Haynes, who signed a five-year contract extension with GWS in the pre-season, has fully recovered from a back issue and played most of a NEAFL practice match last week.
"We were probably expecting him back round three but we feel as though he's had a good four or five weeks of training," Cameron said.
Haynes and Buntine will be joined in the backline by Lachie Keeffe, who has been retained in the team despite an injury scare against Essendon. Keeffe landed awkwardly on his knee in a marking contest and sat out of portion of the match but came back, kicked three goals and has been given the all-clear to travel after being named on the bench.
It'll be Keeffe's 50th AFL game but the Eagles have a few milestones of their own to celebrate - skipper Shannon Hurn's 250 AFL game, Chris Masten's 200th and Josh Kennedy's 200th for the club. Not only that, but they'll be unfurling their 2018 premiership flag in front of a packed crowd who will be expecting an instant turnaround from their shock round one loss to the Brisbane Lions.
"We know we're in a different environment, we're in a hostile environment, and sometimes if you ignore that and don't address it, you wish you did when the game's finished," Cameron said.
"We know it's different. There's 50-odd thousand people and the majority will be West Coast Eagles supporters. Have they got three milestones? Yes they have. But there's still two goalposts at either end and two point posts and the ball will go up and the game will be played at a frenetic pace.
"We feel as though we're in really good shape. We understand that it's a huge task because they win normally at home. But we feel as though our players are in a good mindset and they're keen to challenge the best side in the competition."