The closest Hawthorn come to looking like they are starting the AFL season with a premiership hangover is on paper.
The Hawks will be without seven players from last year's grand final team when they host Brisbane this Saturday in Launceston.
By contrast, Fremantle fielded all but two members of their losing grand final team when they smashed Collingwood by 70 points a week ago.
But the Hawks have powered through the pre-season and will be strong favourites for Saturday's match.
They obliterated an understrength Brisbane side by 131 points before also thrashing North Melbourne and Melbourne in practice matches.
The Hawks are determined not to repeat the genuine premiership hangover of 2009, when they finished out of the finals, and have spoken of unfinished business heading into this season.
Only two of the premiership team absentees are due to injury, with Brad Sewell and Ben Stratton suffering hamstring injuries during the Melbourne game.
Lance Franklin was lured north by Sydney's massive free agency deal, while Max Bailey and Brent Guerra have retired.
Norm Smith medallist Brian Lake and Cyril Rioli are serving suspensions.
St Kilda ruckman Ben McEvoy will make his Hawks debut, while Derick Wanganeen and Tim O'Brien were named for their first senior games.
Kyle Cheney, Taylor Duryea and Will Langford come into the side along with Matt Suckling, who missed all of last season with a knee reconstruction.
First-round draft pick James Aish, a two-time premiership player at SANFL team Norwood, heads three Brisbane players named for their AFL debuts.
Michael Close and Lewis Taylor are also in line for their first senior games.
Former Geelong star Paul Chapman leads four Essendon newcomers for Friday night's clash against fierce rivals North Melbourne.
Caretaker coach Mark Thompson said during the week they probably would not name too many debutants for round one, but in the end they picked three - Patrick Ambrose, Martin Gleeson and Zach Merrett.
Kangaroos father-son recruit Luke McDonald is set for his senior debut and boom free agency signing Nick Dal Santo will play his first official game for North.
As expected, injury-plagued St Kilda and Melbourne will have plenty of newcomers for Saturday night's match.
Saints trio Jack Billings, Luke Dunstan and Eli Templeton were named for their AFL debuts.
Recruits Shane Savage (Hawthorn) and Luke Delaney (North) are also in the team.
Melbourne's line-up features six newcomers, including debutants Jay Kennedy-Smith and Alex Georgiou.
Bernie Vince (Adelaide), Daniel Cross (Western Bulldogs), Viv Michie (Fremantle) and Dom Tyson (GWS) have also joined the Demons.
The Bulldogs' squad for the Sunday match against West Coast in Perth includes Robert Murphy, who has made a speedy recovery from an elbow injury.
But new captain Ryan Griffen has not recovered in time from back tightness.
