Koroit, Port Fairy waiting for the business end of the season - finals

The pair will use Saturday’s top-of-the-table Hampden league clash at Victoria Park to get a better look at their rivals.

But both coaches – Saints’ Chris McLaren and Seagulls’ Dan Nicholson – don’t expect the contest to give too much away.

McLaren, who has picked teenager Seamus Brady for his senior debut, said weather conditions could dicate how the game is played.

“I am tipping a rough day condition-wise,” he said.

“The ground is fairly heavy as well and if it rains all day (Friday) it should be tough going. It could be a real slog and you might not take much out of it whether you have a win or a loss.”

Nicholson said it would be a “good warm up” ahead of September.

“We’ll try a few different things against them on Saturday to see what works,” he said.

“It’s a warm up to finals and we’re hoping to find a few chinks in the armour.”

Both teams will be without some of their best players.

Ben Goodall (corked hip) joins Taylor Mulraney, who will miss a third straight game with an eye injury, on the sidelines for Koroit.

Sam McCartney, who is third in the league’s goal-kicking stakes, will miss after a workplace accident, as will Kurt Smith (leg) and Matt Pitt (work).

Nicholson said David West and Colin Harwood, who join Cam Pevitt (wisdom teeth) in the side, deserved their spots after solid form in the reserves.