Hawthorn coach Sam Mitchell says his side has no excuse to not be ready for Collingwood’s best in a clash he is happy to acknowledge is “massive” for the Hawks’ finals hopes.

Mitchell said former Magpie Jack Ginnivan was “desperate” to return against his old side but would still need to clear hurdles closer to the first bounce at the MCG on Saturday afternoon.

The 21-year-old forward has missed the last two matches due to a hairline crack in his fibula suffered against West Coast in round 16.

“(Ginnivan) is a competitor – obviously, there’s the added media interest that he’s desperate to play because it’s Collingwood, but he would be desperate to play regardless of who it is,” Mitchell said.

“He’s a really important player for us and we’ve missed him the last couple of weeks.

“We’re optimistic, but he still needs to get through a couple of tests.”

The coach said his side was itching for another chance to knock over the reigning premiers after a slow start led to a five-point defeat at the Adelaide Oval in round 4.

“I think the players will be ready. It’s not like we’ve got any excuses for not being ready for what’s to come in this game,” Mitchell said.

“It’s not just important for us, it’s just as important for (Collingwood) and we know that they’ve been in this position more times than us, but they started about where we are at some stage.

“We ran them close earlier in the year in a packed Gather Round fixture which was pretty significant as well – now we get another chance, and hopefully we’re a little bit better.”

Mitchell said his focus had shifted to the match being a “great performance chance” for his young side rather than what it meant for the development of players.

“When you start building a group and think about getting games into players, and you’ve got a future plan on what you want players to be, big games are a part of it,” he said.

“Can we perform against a team mostly built of premiership players on a huge stage on a Saturday afternoon?

“You need to be able to perform in big games. Not every game’s built the same, is it? So this game is worth more than one.”

Mitchell said he was “absolutely rapt” for Jack Scrimshaw as the defender prepared for his 100th AFL game against the Magpies.

The left-footer has been reborn as a key defender this season after he struggled for consistency and was repeatedly dropped early in Mitchell’s tenure.

“I’m really proud of what (Scrimshaw) has been able to do over the last 12 months,” Mitchell said.

“I think he went from a player whose good and not-so-good were a distance apart … I think his worst game this season would be the best bad game of his whole career.

“He’s been a huge factor in our resurgence across the second part of the year.”