Edgeworth striker Oliver Smith is raring to go for the semi-finals and hoping to make up for his three-match suspension for a headbutt with a championship.
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Smith returns against Lambton Jaffas on Sunday at Jack McLaughlan Oval after missing the final two Northern NSW NPL rounds and the Eagles' monster FFA Cup round of 16 clash with the Newcastle Jets at home.
The former Brisbane Strikers player led the league on 12 goals in round 20 when he headbutted Valentine's Jacob Bailey after copping a second yellow card in the Eagles' shock 3-1 loss.
It was a "heat of the moment" mistake that cost the 21-year-old a chance to impress on the national stage against the Jets and a shot at the goalscoring award, which Jaffa Braedyn Crowley claimed with 14.
His absence was also costly for the Eagles, who lost 5-1 to the Jets in the cup and 3-0 to Jaffas last week.
He returns on Sunday for the first-leg semi-final, along with Keanu Moore and Aaron Oppedisano from injury. Dylan Holz (ribs) remains sidelined, while Josh Evans and Daniel McBreen are away.
Smith said he was "raring to go" after the disappointment of missing key games.
"It was a heat of the moment thing," Smith said of the headbutt.
"I got a red card, which I thought was a bit suspect, and then straight away someone ran up into my face saying a lot of stuff.
"It was a combination of things ... I was one goal ahead [in the golden boot], so I was thinking of getting the premiership, the golden boot, then I got the red card ... there it all goes.
"If I could take it back, I obviously would in a heartbeat. These finals, hopefully I do well and get a grand final win to sort of make up for it."
The inclusion of Smith will be a major boost for the Eagles, who were flat against the Jaffas last week after backing up from the cup.
"It was a big week, but that's not making excuses," Zane said of the loss.
"We were poor and they were good ... they turned up ready to play and we didn't.
"We just didn't have any fight in us. It was one of the worst efforts I've seen in my time. It probably was the worst. It just lacked any fight whatsoever, which was disappointing, but I felt flat myself, so I'm not going to point fingers. We'll be back. We'll give it our best."
Edgeworth won the first clash between the sides 2-0, but the Jaffas were backing up from an extra-time cup loss to Magic and had Crowley suspended.
"We haven't played each other when we've both been at our best, so I don't think you can read much into it," Zane said of the form. "It doesn't matter anyway. It's a whole new slate."
Jaffas coach James Pascoe said his side came through the win over Edgeworth unscathed.
Meanwhile, Weston have added Jarryd Sutherland (Hamilton) and Connor Heydon (Adamstown) to their 2020 attack.
Bears assistant coach Craig Stoker said the pair would boost their squad, which would lose attacking midfielder Liam Wilson to trials in The Netherlands.
The Bears finished fifth on 37 points to narrowly miss the finals.