Ruckman Archie Smith has been selected for his first game of the season and will run head-on into Eagles star Nic Naitanui.

Veteran Stefan Martin is unavailable with knee soreness paving the way for the spring-heeled 203cm Smith to partner Oscar McInerney in the ruck in the only change to the side which defeated Fremantle by 12 points in round two.

Martin spent time on the sidelines receiving treatment during that match and although he was able to run-out the game, has been ruled out for round three.

Coach Chris Fagan has opted to stick with two ruckmen and given Smith his chance against an opponent he drew comparisons with early in his career.

Smith, who played a starring role in the Lions 2019 NEAFL premiership, will add to his 11 senior games in one of the toughest match-ups for a bigman in the competition against Naitanui.

The match will also see a couple of milestones celebrated with Queenslander and Lions academy graduate Harris Andrews to play his 100^th game for the CLUBs.

Grant Birchall’s second game for the club will also be the 250^th in a stellar career that saw him win four premierships with Hawthorn.