Despite the obvious attraction, the hosts have no plans to target the handful of Irish players with AFL experience in Friday night's International Rules First Test at Etihad Stadium, according to Australian coach Rodney Eade.
Three members of the touring squad - Sydney's Tommy Walsh, Pearce Hanley of Brisbane and Carlton's Zach Tuohy - ply their trade in the AFL, and a fourth, Tadhg Kennelly, only recently retired after 197 games with the Swans.
A fifth Irish squad member, Colm Begley, played 30 games for the Lions and Saints between 2006-09.
While Eade concedes that Walsh, Hanley, Tuohy, Kennelly and Begley are better equipped than most of their teammates to match the Australians for physicality, he believes it would be a mistake to single them out for special treatment.
"What we've spoken about is the whole squad," Eade told a pre-match media conference at Etihad Stadium on Thursday.
"We've got to take them as extremely talented players which they are."
"They've got a couple of big lads up forward and some really quick players, some real speed and they can really kick the ball."
"So we've got to be mindful of every player, not only the AFL players."
"If we concentrate on one or two there'll be another two or three that will get out."
Ireland team manager Anthony Tohill expects to have a full squad to select from despite the late arrival of several players because of club commitments at home.
Tohill said the Irish will need to take full advantage of the few benefits the hybrid game affords them to make up for aspects of the game, such as tackling, that favour the Australians.
"We should be able to score better than the Australians with the round ball, we should be able to kick it better," Tohill said.
"But our players are not used to being put under the pressure they're put under when they're disposing of the ball."
"In our game if you touch someone when they're kicking the ball it's a free kick, whereas in this game they're put under immense physical pressure, and even if they don't make the tackle, it's the threat of the tackle."
"It should be an advantage to us, but it's one that we really haven't been able to exploit, mainly due to the way Australia can pressurise us."
"We can never replicate in our training sessions the intensity that Australia bring to the game ... but we'll know Friday night."
Both Eade and Tohill agreed there's zero chance of a repeat of the on-field violence in 2005 that drove a wedge between the Gaelic Athletic Association and the AFL and put future series at risk.
"It has to be played in that spirit if the thing's going to have a future," said Tohill.
"We're very mindful of our responsibilities to the future of the game, to the coaches that are coming behind us, to the players that are coming behind us, so that they have the opportunity to play for their country."
"It's too big a thing to be stuffed up by someone misbehaving on the football pitch."
"The players all know the boundaries, they all know what's acceptable and what isn't."
"The series last year was played in a sporting and hard way."
"There were no outbursts of some of the violent scenes of the past and we don't want to see that."
"If that returns, the game has no future."