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There’s a tough road ahead for the Sydney Swans, but before they get there, they have a home clash against St Kilda at the SCG. Live scores and commentary kicks off from 3.20pm AEST.
There’s no doubt the Swans go into today’s game as heavy favourites – they sit comfortably inside the top four, while their opponents have been between a refresh and a rebuild for most of the season.
But it’s games like today where the Swans can’t waiver at any point.
Knowing that they have both Geelong and Hawthorn before the finals begin, it’s interesting to see how the Swans approach this game.
Especially when you look back to what happened last week when they lost to Collingwood.
After such a strong start in the opening 15 minutes, the Swans work rate dropped considerably, their pressure was close to non-existent and there seemed to be an over-reliance on Kurt Tippett.
That’s not to say having a full-forward kicking six goals is a bad thing. It’s just when you have no one else stepping up to the plate to help out is when there’s an issue.
So how they react today against the Saints is a big show as to how hungry they will really be come September.
Gary Rohan’s return will be watched with interest – it’s been almost a year and a half since he’s played for the Swans in the AFL, so we hope for a safe return.
St Kilda has no doubt struggled plenty in the last couple of months, without winning a game in their last seven.
They were ultra-competitive earlier in the year against the Swans when they played in New Zealand and kept within a couple of kicks for most of the game.
While the dimensions of Westpac Stadium in Wellington have some similarities with the SCG, they won’t be afforded the wintry conditions we saw that night.
Today’s a fast track and I doubt the Saints will be able to stick with the Swans today.
If there is a positive to come out of last week’s game is that they did win the contested possession count last week against Hawthorn.
But to win that stat against the Swans is a completely different kettle of fish!
And to beat the midfield of the likes of Kennedy, Jack, O’Keefe and Malceski is also going to be one mighty task.
If they can hold their own in both of those key areas, who knows… it could go a long way to the side being competitive this afternoon.
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