And that need for versatility plays right into the hands of fit-again Cats tall Lachie Henderson as Scott ponders selection ahead of Friday night’s preliminary final against the Swans

“I think against Sydney that flexibility is going to be important,” Scott said.

“For obvious reasons the focus can be on (Lance Franklin), and Tom Lonergan has traditionally taken him, but having the capacity to have different players who can help out in that area would be an asset.

“We think we’ve got pretty good flexibility in our squad and irrespective of the final 22 we go with we’ve got confidence that we’ve got a few guys who can play at either end of the ground.

“Lachie is certainly one of them.”

Henderson hasn’t played since suffering a knee injury in round 22.

Scott said the 22 players who helped the Cats to a thrilling two-point win over Hawthorn in the qualifying final are in the box seat to keep their spots, but Henderson appears to have a compelling case for inclusion.

Quelling Franklin isn’t Scott’s only headache, of course, with game-breaking midfielder Josh Kennedy another major threat.

“If you could completely stop Kennedy getting the ball that would be a win, but that is unlikely,” Scott conceded.

“We just have to make sure we put enough pressure on him when he does get it and limit the effectiveness of those guys getting it to their outside runners.”

Scott has plenty of selection scenarios to ponder ahead of Friday night but it doesn’t appear that dropping Jimmy Bartel is one of them.

The Cats coach is in the enviable position of having a squad of 30 fit and in-form players to choose from.

“It’s good for the footy club and it’s good for the team that we’ve got lots of options, but we’ll have disappointed players and unlucky players to miss out,” Scott said.

Bartel’s place in the side has been a source of much conjecture, but Scott gave every indication the 32-year-old will face the Swans when he spoke to reporters after yesterday’s training session.

“There are a lot of players who are in our team who aren’t absolutely guaranteed a spot, but Jimmy is much more likely than unlikely (to play) and that’s been the case for a long time,” he said.

“I understand that it attracts a lot of attention because he’s been a champion player and he’s towards the end of his career, but we’ve been pretty consistent all year that we don’t announce our team on Tuesday.

“We’ve got a bit to work through just yet but the guys who played in our last game are all in the box seat to play this week.”

By contrast, the Swans are limping into the preliminary final, but Scott said he will spend little time trying to figure out if injured trio Jarrad McVeigh, Callum Mills and Gary Rohan will recover in time to play.

Sydney ruck-forward Kurt Tippett has been cleared to return from a fractured jaw that kept him from the Swans’ semi-final win over Adelaide.

-AAP