Jack Steele needs to tell St Kilda to strangle the life out of the GWS Giants to end their dream run - because "fairytales aren't made in finals".
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So says three-time premiership captain Luke Hodge as Steele's Saints prepare to face the Giants in an elimination final at the MCG on Saturday.
St Kilda have been the hardest team to score against this season, conceding an average of less than 72 points per game - as if anyone would expect anything less from a Ross Lyon-coached side.
But the Giants have enough scoring threats to enter the game as favourites with an impressive midfield led by Stephen Coniglio, Tom Green, Josh Kelly and Callan Ward.
Hodge says Canberra export Steele is the man to give the Saints the edge in the arm-wrestle.
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"If I was Jack, I'd be saying 'we need to strangle the life out of them'," Hodge said on SEN's Whateley.
"This is a fairytale for them, but fairytales aren't made in finals.
"This is about hard work, this is about determination, this is about squeezing them, choking their lifestyle.
"They've got an entertaining midfield, they've got some exciting forwards led by the skipper [Greene] up there, but we don't want that.
"Make it into an arm wrestle, and that's going to fall our way.
![Jack Steele's Saints are marching into an elimination final. Picture by Morgan Hancock Jack Steele's Saints are marching into an elimination final. Picture by Morgan Hancock](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/36vwtM5n3dmMVgNPycRBEHz/751ff2f8-aaab-4df6-857d-7950cd1a4259.jpg/r0_268_2622_1748_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg)
"As far as how Ross [Lyon] thinks, how their midfield needs to think - they need to squeeze numbers up just to choke the opposition ball movement.
"And then their work rate. We all know that they've got exciting players to work two ways as high half-forwards, that's what I'd be pushing it back to them.
"I'd be telling the boys it's gritty, it's finals. They don't know what it's about. It's about tough, hard football.
"They want to have open, energised, fancy football to work into their skilful play. That's not what we want."
The Giants have won nine of their past 11 matches and a final-round win over Carlton secured their place in the top eight.
The resurgence has done enough to spark belief the Giants could contend for premierships in the coming years - some turnaround from their place in 14th little more than two months ago.
"I've tried to put this into as limited words as I possibly could, because I know [Toby Greene] is more a man of action," Hodge said when asked to provide advice for the GWS captain.
"With Toby, it's riding the momentum. 'We didn't think we were going to be here, no one thought we were going to be here'. So it's all about the optimistic mindset of 'What could we get to, what could we do?'"
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