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Opinion
When the Magpies take to the field for the preliminary final against Sydney in the Saturday twilight, the 22 men wearing red and white may not be their most formidable challenge.
The Swans have made their home base a fortress across many a year, with the dimensions of the ground and the point of difference it offers, one of coach John Longmire’s greatest assets.
Like Geelong, the Swans enjoy a quirky venue advantage that few teams share and after a home and away season that saw the bloods win nine and lose just two at home, the Sydney Cricket Ground once again looms as the 23rd man come Saturday afternoon.
In 2022, the Swans beat the finals bound Cats, Tigers, Bulldogs and Pies at the famous ground, losing only to a gutsy Brisbane Lions in Round 7 and inexplicably to the Gold Coast the following week. Outside that fortnight, Sydney have bossed their home venue with aplomb.
Jack Crisp of the Magpies celebrates kicking a goal. (Photo by Quinn Rooney/Getty Images)
Considerably short in comparison to the average ground, the Sydney Cricket Ground has been part of the AFL landscape since the early 1980s.
Yet the venue has always been something just that little bit different; a unique place where Melbourne teams have been hood winked on many an occasion and one the locals have used to chalk up the wins required to advance to finals’ play in 22 of the last 27 AFL seasons.
No club can boast the same record and the beautiful little ground in which the men with South Melbourne running their veins competes, has become emblematic of the unparalleled consistency of the Swans.
Sydney racked up 1064 points at home in 2022 and conceded a miserly 69.1 points per game. They scored just over 96 points on an average day and those numbers translated to a home percentage of 140 at the Sydney Cricket Ground.
Away from the venue, the numbers are vastly different, with seven wins from eleven matches and a percentage of 117 enunciating the difference between meeting the Swans on their home deck and facing the bloods on the road.
Still, the Swans’ away numbers stack up pretty well and to put all of the above into meaningful and contemporary context, Collingwood face an enormous challenge in this weekend’s prelim when it comes to finding ways to lessen Sydney’s advantage at home, particularly in light of their 50-77 loss at the same ground in Round 22.
The Pies averaged 83.5 points per game across the course of the regular season and their percentage at the completion of home and away play was the least convincing of the finals’ participants at 104.3.
Nail-biting and narrow wins saw them scrape across the line in an array of matches that could well have turned against them with a simple bounce of the ball.
That could well play into the hands of Longmire’s men, who love a scrap and fear no contest, no matter how tight it may be.
Should the animalistic Sydney defence that bore its teeth against Melbourne in the opening week of finals turn up again on Saturday, the Pies will face a physical and confrontational challenge to go along with the task of finding a way to move the ball aggressively and threateningly against potentially the most well organised and efficient defence in the competition.
Most crucial for Collingwood will be their ability to be daring and bold with the ball through a corridor that the Swans have been skilled in denying teams via an intricate knowledge of their home home ground and an ability to close the space required to do so.
Crowds at the SCG have been superb after the Swans found some success. (Photo by Cameron Spencer/AFL Media/Getty Images)
Should the Pies be unable to move the ball at anything other than express pace, Sydney will deny them the aggressive option and potentially drive them towards contest on the wings; thus lessening the scoring potential of Collingwood and increasing the chances of Longmire’s team triumphing across a full four quarters.
Jordan De Goey, Jack Ginnivan and Jamie Elliott will be crucial for the Pies, should they hope to disrupt the defensive control generally achieved by the Sydney Swans at the SCG. Engaging in an arm wrestle will do no favours for Collingwood and throwing x-factor talent and moments at Sydney may well be the best way to rock their solid defensive foundations that have rarely wavered in 2022.
Should both teams bring their best, the second prelim of 2022 could well be one of the most brutal and competitive games of the season. There will be a little less room to move, the tackling will be ferocious and the Pies will keep coming all day long.
However, it could well be that the Sydney Cricket Ground itself decides the second participant in the 2022 grand final, with the Swans mighty tough to beat at home and the Pies knowing that all too well.
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