The two teams head into Sunday's clash level on points just outside the top four, with GWS ahead on percentage.

However their formlines are very different, with the Tigers winning their last two, including a 92-point shellacking of Gold Coast last week, and the Giants coming off successive losses.

It shapes as a critical three-week period for both clubs, as each also play fellow finals aspirants Collingwood and Port Adelaide over the next two weeks.

"The great thing is we're playing some good sides in similar positions to ourselves so they're really important games, but none bigger than this week versus GWS," Tigers' coach Damien Hardwick said.

The Tigers have started to get some of their previously injured stars back, with key forward Jack Riewoldt to resume his fledgling partnership with prize recruit Tom Lynch.

Their combination has had few opportunities to develop, with wrist and knee injuries limiting Riewoldt to just three games this season, and none since round six in late April.

Richmond won two of the three matches they lined up in together, with Lynch kicking seven goals and Riewoldt three.

"Tom Lynch is unique, he's such a tall man, he marks the ball at the highest point and Jack Riewoldt can jump really high and he takes the ball well above his head," Giants' wingman Adam Tomlinson told AAP.

"Obviously they do have two great straight forwards, but at the same time they've got this powerhouse of a group that can apply so much pressure to the defenders and midfielders when they get the ball in their back half, and they just create more opportunities."

While the Tigers welcome back Riewoldt, GWS also have a significant inclusion with speedster Lachie Whitfield, arguably their most influential player, returning from a broken collarbone suffered in round 11.

"There's not many rounds left and you want to start playing your best footy at the end of the year and this is the perfect opportunity for us to go and do that," Tomlinson said.

GWS, who will give Bobby Hill a senior debut, beat Richmond by 49 points in Sydney earlier in the season, but Richmond have won all four of their previous MCG clashes.

The last time they played at the MCG was in the 2017 preliminary final won by Richmond in front of a crowd of almost 95,000, the vast majority of them Tigers supporters.

Australian Associated Press