Cresswell said the Raiders were shown up by North Albury last weekend and feared the same could happen again.

Both clubs welcomed back key players at the selection table last night with Dean Heta returning for the home team and Wodonga rushing veteran forward Daniel Bradshaw into the line-up.

Cresswell said the Bulldogs had earned their spot near the top of the table.

“Wodonga has been fantastic with its body pressure and attack on the ball,” he said.

“Obviously they are a very ferocious side.

“They have some really good players like Twitty (Jarrod Twitt) and that and are three-zip for a reason.

“We will need to bring our best game to get ourselves a win.

“It’s a tough competition and if you don’t bring the right attitude early you will be chasing three or four goals really quickly.

“Our first two weeks were terrific but we dropped off in a number of areas last week.”

Heta and Sam Scott came into the Raiders’ side at the expense of the suspended Matt Murray and Northern Territory recruit Jackson Clark while Bradshaw has recovered from general soreness to replace Jarrod Sinclair.

Wodonga has been the surprise packet of the competition with three straight wins against North Albury, Wangaratta Rovers and Yarrawonga and remains the only undefeated team alongside Albury.

Talented forward James Grills will make his debut Albury against North Albury at Albury Sportsground tomorrow.

Grills, who had a knee reconstruction last pre-season, forced his way into the side along with Ryan Hon and James O’Connell while the Hoppers promoted exciting youngster Shaun Mannagh for the suspended Nick Holman.

Yarrawonga and Corowa-Rutherglen suffered blows with big men Brandon Symes and Luke Gestier ruled out of their clash at J.C. Lowe Oval due to injuries.