Alistair Clarkson says Ben Brown and Jarrad Waite must be shut out of the game for Hawthorn to win on Sunday.

"If we allow them (the Kangaroos) to generate 50-60 inside 50s, then we're not going to be able to stop Brown and Waite, I don't think," the Hawks’ coach told the media.

"I don't think any club in the competition will if there's that amount of inside 50s.

“If we can keep that supply down a little bit, then that will go a long way towards us trying to win the game." 

The midfield battle will be an intriguing one too, with Brad Scott suggesting on Thursday that in-form tagger Ben Jacobs may not go to dominant Hawk Tom Mitchell.   

Clarkson, however, is welcoming the prospect of a tag.  

“It makes it easier for us, in a sense, but having said that, he (Mitchell) can also make a good contribution when it's just head-to-head in the middle of the ground too," Clarkson said. 

"We don't really mind one way or the other, but certainly it's not a case for us where if he gets tagged, we're thinking 'Oh jeez, we're in all sorts of trouble'.

"As long as he's disciplined about it, which he was last week, it can be a real benefit for our side."

Melbourne co-captain Nathan Jones kept Mitchell to a relatively quiet game by his lofty standards last weekend (24 disposals, 14 clearances), but it had no impact on the result, as the Hawks ran out 67-point winners. 

"He made a contribution for us and what's more, he gave our side more flexibility because when there's a guy tagging from the opposition, it can allow you to manipulate things around stoppages a bit more and manipulate space and who else is going to get the ball," Clarkson said.

"That worked really well for us last week, despite him not getting 40 touches, which is what everyone in the outside footy world wants to perhaps see, he probably played just as important role for us as he had in the first three games of the season."