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Putting his hand up: Mathew Stokes hits the training track with his Geelong team mates ahead of the Grand Final.

Stokes faces nervous wait

21/09/2009 2:00:00 PM
Small forward Mathew Stokes admits he faces a nerve-wracking few days before finding out whether he has forced his way back into the Geelong team for Saturday's AFL grand final against St Kilda.

Stokes declared himself unavailable for last Saturday's 73-point preliminary-final thumping of Collingwood with groin soreness.

But he proved his fitness by training on Monday morning before a crowd of more than 5,000 fans at Skilled Stadium.

Stokes, 24, expects to learn by midweek whether coach Mark Thompson can find a spot for him in the side.

"It's definitely nerve-wracking, but exciting as well," said Stokes, who played in Geelong's winning grand final side in 2007 and the one which lost last year's decider to Hawthorn.

"It's definitely all about the the team and if I find out I don't play, I can live with that and I'll be supporting the boys."

One of Shannon Byrnes, Travis Varcoe or David Wojcinski could be omitted if the Cats decide to include Stokes in the grand final lineup.

"It's a good problem to have from the club's point of view," said Geelong captain Tom Harley.

"For the individuals it might be a bit restless, but we've been team-focused all along for the past three years and the team we put out is representing the club, we're not representing individuals at all.

"The coaches will make the right decision on the make-up of the side and the best structures and I'd imagine they'd make the decision as soon as they can."

AAP

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