HAWTHORN Coach Alastair Clarkson has thanked the AFL for increasing the number of substitute players for rounds two and three of the NAB Cup, revealing it will enable clubs to condition their players for the home and away season.

The AFL intended to permit three interchange players and one substitute player and cap rotations at 20 per quarter for weeks two and three of the pre-season before softening their stance.

Club football managers and coaches expressed concerns about the trial rule, with the well-being and conditioning of their players at the forefront of their minds heading into the 2013 premiership season.

Clarkson says he is grateful the AFL amended the rule, now allowing three interchange players and three substitutes and a cap of 80 rotations per game.

“It’s really good the league listened to the footy managers and the coaches’ requests over the last couple of weeks and they’ve allowed us to have an extra two subs,” he said at the Ricoh Centre on Thursday.

“It doesn’t seem like much but it allows us a lot more flexibility.”

The Hawks coach revealed the softening of the trial rule will help two of his players in particular, with midfielders Liam Shiels and Xavier Ellis likely to make their first appearances for 2013 next week.

Clarkson says having three substitute players will enable he and his coaching and fitness staff to manage the game time and conditioning of the pair as they embark on their first hit out of 2013 in Tasmania next Saturday.

“We’ve got Xavier Ellis and Liam Shiels for instance who we want to play next week and we would have felt compelled to play them for 80 per cent of game time next week, but now we’ve got the flexibility to play them 40 or 50 per cent game time,” he said.

“That’s probably ideal (game time) for their first games back so it has been good in that respect.”

Both Ellis and Shiels are among two other big name Hawks yet to feature in the NAB Cup, with Captain Luke Hodge and utility Shaun Burgoyne still to play.

Clarkson says Shiels had a delayed start to his pre-season, but has had his eye on a week three return for the Hawks.

“Ellis just had a little bit of calf tightness and Shiels has just had a bit of a delayed start to his (pre-season) campaign,” he said.

“We always had him (Shiels) steered towards NAB three and he’ll be ready to go next week.”

Despite suffering two surprise losses to Gold Coast and Brisbane in week one of the NAB Cup, Clarkson says his team’s approach to the pre-season competition hasn’t changed.

“We’ve got to get as much conditioning and game time into our players as we possibly can knowing full well whatever we do in the NAB Cup isn’t going to prepare us fully for the first round of the home and away because that goes for an extra 30 minutes,” he said.

Clarkson refuted claims Hodge had suffered a setback in his preparation for the beginning of the season, as reported in the media on Wednesday night.

“I don’t know where that report came from, but we’re happy with his progress,” he said.

“We’re anticipating Hodgey is going to be playing footy at Round 1, but just what footy that is, we’ve got to make a judgement at that point in time as long as he doesn’t have a hiccup between now and then.”

Hawthorn take on Western Bulldogs on Friday night at Etihad Stadium in week two of the NAB Cup.