August offers a host of challenges for the second-placed Wolves, who are coming off just their fourth loss of the season, and their upcoming clash with Young shapes as a defining moment for the club.

The month opened with a 2-0 defeat at the hand of Lake Albert and Tolland must now win their three remaining games to lock down second place and a free ticket to the Pascoe Cup preliminary finals.

Injuries and suspensions continue to weigh down on the Wolves and coach Daniel Lawrence is hopeful his skeleton crew can keep it together against the gritty Lions.

Far from disappointed with the side’s recent form, Lawrence remains quietly confident of securing a win.

“I think we gave the Sharks a decent run for their money, to be honest,” he said.

“It was a terrible night for football in greasy conditions but we held them pretty well and they didn’t create a lot of chances.

“I thought Dom Bertazzo was really good matching up against Fred (Gardner) and kept him relatively quiet all game, so he’s been a really good addition to the side and has been putting in some good games.

“Yes, we know Young will be tough and they were tough last time around too, but there’s also a little bit of inconsistency in their game and their form really depends on which teams shows up.”

Tolland’s line up is set to shift with stand-in skipper Richard Skidmore unavailable, leaving a void in their key defensive role.

Matthew Kleine and Jayden Beattie shape as potential options to fill the gap at centre back but Lawrence is favouring Bertazzo in the hot seat.

“Richard’s out so we’re looking at shifting Matt Kelly into left back and keeping Dom at the back there,” he said.

“Matty (Kleine) will get a good run in his last game before he goes under the knife for shoulder surgery and we might even look at giving Nick Young some time if he gets through training this week.”

Nicholas Tsipiras (suspension) and Riley Portors (injury) remain out of action while a question mark hangs over Brett Wendt as the season draws to a close.

Lawrence knows the coming weeks will be crucial for his side.

“We’re looking to consolidate our finals position in the top two … but we’re not going into this game thinking Young will be easy.”

“They’re in the mix for finals too and I think they’ll go for it.

They’ve got some fast young players in their team and we’re definitely not going to take them lightly.”

Fourth-placed Young are hot on Tolland’s heels after upsetting Leeton 1-0 last weekend.

A Tolland loss would likely see them slide down to third on the Pascoe Cup ladder with Henwood Park strong favourites to edge Tumut this weekend.

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