East Wagga-Kooringal's task of toppling the undefeated Ganmain-Grong Grong-Matong on Friday night had been made more difficult by an outbreak of COVID-19.
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The Hawks have lost a number of players this week to COVID and at this stage are facing the prospect of not having a bench available for the AFL Southern NSW women's top-of-the-table clash.
The outbreak has come at a bad time for the second-placed EWK team, who are looking to send a message to the in-form Lions just two weeks out from finals.
"It's a massive game. It's probably the biggest one for the season, I reckon," EWK coach Amy Coote said.
"We definitely want to be competitive. We want to show them we've got what it takes to be a premiership side.
"We've had a few of the girls test positive for COVID in the past 48 hours, which is not ideal coming into a game against Ganmain. It's a bit of a bummer but it is what it is and we've just got to deal with the cards we've been dealt."
The Hawks lost to North Wagga in round one but have won their next three to move into second spot, on percentage.
Coote has been happy with the way her team has been tracking but acknowledges it is going to be a tough ask now to make it four straight.
"The girls have been pretty solid the last couple of weeks," she said.
"We've only got 16 at the moment, so no subs. I've gone from having seven on the bench most weeks to 16, maybe 17, I'm still waiting on a couple to confirm. It's a real bummer, I was hoping to put our strongest team forward for this week's match but it's just unpredictable with COVID.
"I know our backline is going to have to step up and be the bones of the team, we want to get the ball out of the midfield and deliver it into the forward line and hopefully get the reward on the scoreboard."
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In a further blow to EWK, Sophie Crouch will play her last game on Friday night before she moves away.
Coote said she is going to look to the likes of Crouch, Anneka Piercy, Kyra Jackson and Holly Conroy to lead in the absence of others.
"We're going to be relying heavily on Sophie Crouch, she rotates through the midfield and the forward line. She's pretty much set the standard and been an absolute workhorse," Coote said.
"We'll be relying heavily on Anneka Piercy, Kyra Jackson and Holly Conroy through the midfield.
"Holly's versatile, she can go through the midfield or backline or forwards, depending on how the game goes. If it's more defensive I'll throw her in the backline or the mids, and if it's more attacking, I'll get her in the forward line and the mids."
Meantime, round five will feature a double header at Apex Park on Friday night. CSU will take on North Wagga in a grand final replay at 6.30pm, before Mangoplah-Cookardinia United-Eastlakes take on Narrandera at 7.30pm.
Round five draw
POOL A
6.30pm: East Wagga-Kooringal v GGGM at Gumly Oval
6.30pm: CSU v North Wagga at Apex Park
7.30pm: Griffith v Brookdale at Exies Oval
POOL B
6.30pm: Collingullie-Glenfield Park v Marrar at Crossroads Oval
7pm: Coolamon v Turvey Park at Kindra Park
7.30pm: MCUE v Narrandera at Apex Park
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