SUMMARY

Port Adelaide was a James Sicily poster away from a straight-sets exit last Friday but will instead head to Sydney with its backs against the wall – which is just how it likes it.

With coach Ken Hinkley seemingly under constant fire, including from his own supporters, the Power have shown a remarkable resilience in the back part of the season as they eye a first Grand Final since 2007.

SWANS v POWER Follow it LIVE

But they won't have it easy against the Swans, who are refreshed, in familiar surrounds and close to full fitness, although the loss of skipper Callum Mills to injury is a blow.

The Power have won their past eight games against the Swans dating back to 2017, including a 112-point thrashing just six weeks ago.

But they'll have to adjust to the unique dimensions of the SCG, where they have played just once since 2018.

Where and when: SCG, Friday September 20, 7.40pm AEST

NO LATE CHANGES

SUBSTITUTES
Sydney: Robbie Fox
Port Adelaide: Francis Evans

WHAT HAPPENED THIS YEAR?

Round 21: Port Adelaide 22.16 (148) beat Sydney 5.6 (36) by 112 points at Adelaide Oval

A bizarre anomaly or an indication of what to expect on Friday night? The only game between these two sides this year produced one of the more extraordinary results of the season, with the Power storming to a 45-0 lead at quarter-time on their way to a record-breaking win against the ladder leaders. John Longmire slammed a "completely and utterly unacceptable" showing from his side, which was smashed around the contest, conceded a staggering 22 marks inside 50 and was impotent in attack. The Power have now won the past eight meetings between the two sides so if you are to put any stock recent history to determine who will win this game, there's only one conclusion to make.

THE STATS THAT MATTER

Sydney
Sydney is the No.1-ranked team in the AFL at stopping its opposition from moving the ball from the defensive 50 to the forward 50, which has been one of the Power's strengths this season. Port has targeted the corridor from its defensive 50 more than any other side this season, but that'll be tough to do against the well-organised Swans outfit. And with Dan Houston and Kane Farrell out injured, the Power might have to find another way to goal.

Port Adelaide
Despite a horror thrashing at the hands of Geelong two weeks ago, Port Adelaide has been one of the best defensive sides in the AFL in the back part of the season. Since round 16, including the 138 points they leaked against the Cats, the Power have conceded an average of 70 points per game (No.2 in the AFL). Last week, they kept the high-scoring Hawthorn to just 72 points, the Hawks' second-lowest score since round 9. But the Power will be tested against the Swans, who are the No.1 scoring team this year (average 98 points per game) thanks to their ability to score both from turnover (ranked No.1) and clearances (No.2).

IT'S A BIG WEEK FOR ...

Sydney
The Power were ferocious in the early stages against Hawthorn last week and having wilted under that kind of heat in round 21, the Swans will need to stand up at the contest. While it will take a team approach to withstand Port's relentless pressure, James Rowbottom looms as a key man. The 23-year-old has had another stellar season and is ranked No.2 in the League for tackles, which is the kind of pressure he'll need to replicate on Friday night. He can't do it alone, but another strong game from Rowbottom will go a long way to the Swans neutralising the contest and letting their attacking weapons loose.

Port Adelaide
Much like the Swans, the Power don't rely too heavily on big bags of goals from their talls in the forward 50, meaning there will again be plenty of focus on livewire Willie Rioli to make an impact. The 29-year-old was electric against Hawthorn last week, with his ferocious tackle pressure, clever disposal and ability to make something out of nothing making him a constant threat. Mitch Georgiades has led the line admirably this season, but its Rioli who looms as Port's x-factor inside 50.

PREDICTION

A meek surrender one week and absolutely ferocious the next, it's hard to know what to make of this Port Adelaide side. Sydney at the SCG is a major test for anyone and if the Swans can get all their big weapons firing, they will be incredibly hard to stop. But if the Power can put the emotion of last week aside and bring the same intensity that derailed the Hawthorn machine last week, they are in with a red-hot chance. The slick and well-oiled Swans or the aggressive, determined Power with their backs to the wall? We're tipping the Swans by 16 points, but not with any great confidence.

SYDNEY has emphatically bounced back from the lowest point of its late-season slump to surge into a second Grand Final in three seasons with a 36-point triumph over Port Adelaide at the SCG.

Just 48 days after the Swans had been humiliated by their bogey side, the minor premier snapped an eight-match losing streak against the Power when it counted most with a 14.11 (95) to 8.11 (59) victory on Friday night.

SWANS v POWER Full match coverage and stats

Sydney will now return for a fifth Grand Final under coach John Longmire in his 14th season in charge, while hoping to clinch its first premiership since 2012 when it faces either Geelong or Brisbane.

Isaac Heeney celebrated his milestone match in style with another sublime performance as the midfielder gathered 24 disposals with six clearances and booted two goals. 

The gun onballer shook off the close attention of Power minder Willem Drew to find plenty of the ball around the field while also drifting forward to present as a danger near goal.

With Drew watching Heeney closely, Errol Gulden (27 disposals) was able to get off the chain and Chad Warner (21, two goals) warmed into the game as the Swans' midfield stars all shined.

Sydney also had plenty of options in attack as key forwards Joel Amartey (three goals), Logan McDonald (two) and Hayden McLean (one) each hit the scoreboard, while Tom Papley (three) brought his usual energy and added an early spark.

But the Swans will be sweating on the fitness of McDonald after he was subbed out in the final term suffering an issue with an ankle.

The Power opened the scoring with a goal to Jase Burgoyne from the first of several contentious free kicks, but were soon overrun as Sydney swarmed around the contests and got its slingshot firing out of defence.

Travis Boak turned back the clock to gather 22 disposals and kick one goal, while Ryan Burton (23, one) and Burgoyne (19, one) offered dash out of defence.

Captain Connor Rozee (17, two) led the way even as the Power were outplayed, while Zak Butters (20) had his influence limited by Swans minder James Jordon and at times looked to be playing under duress.

Aliir Aliir showed early signs of returning to haunt his former side as he cut off several Sydney attacks with his aerial prowess, however, the Port Adelaide defender’s impact was soon limited as the Swans sent versatile veteran Luke Parker to mind his ex-teammate while also presenting as a scoring threat.

On a night when Ken Hinkley coached the Power for the 274th time to overtake Mark Williams for the most matches in charge of the club, his side fell one game short of reaching the decider for the fourth time in his 12-year tenure. 

The Swans have been sluggish starters for much of the season, with the habit most starkly exposed when the Power opened up an improbable 71-0 lead in their clash just 48 days ago.

But for just the second time in the past eight matches, Sydney led at the first change as goalsneak Papley snapped truly from a set shot after the siren to stretch the margin to nine points.

The Swans pulled further away in the second term with their ball movement up and running as well as having more potency in the forward half, going into the main break with a 25-point advantage even as the Power dominated the clearances 26-9.

The Power fought out the second half bravely without being able to crawl back to within reach, until the Swans were able to cruise through the dying stages with a grander stage in sight.

Swans stalwart lives on the edge in milestone match
Dane Rampe had to do it the hard way before joining the Swans in the months after they won their most recent premiership in 2012. The former co-captain reached 250 matches on Friday night, but is yet to taste the ultimate success while being part of three losing Grand Final teams and risked missing another opportunity with a high blow on Zak Butters. The Swans were out to test Butters’ shaky ribs throughout the contest, but Rampe pushed it to the limits with a late bump as his forearm caught the Power midfielder around the neck. The hard-nosed Butters got up and played out the match without any sign of concern after a down-the-field free kick was awarded, but the incident was an early reminder to play the game with next week somewhere in the back of the mind. 

Power towers fail to make the most of their chance 
Port Adelaide found goals hard to come by as their key forwards were unable to make the most of their opportunities, while the Swans had more options in attack. Mitch Georgiades looked the most likely to have an impact and at least had multiple shots on goal, Charlie Dixon battled bravely and regularly brought the ball to ground, while Esava Ratugolea was mostly unsighted even as the Power searched for more targets. But after the Power were ruthless with 22 marks inside their forward 50 the last time these sides met, they could only manage eight in the preliminary final as their triple-threat failed to fire. 

Swans end Power supremacy with contest no longer king
Sydney paid the price for only being able to outmuscle Port Adelaide around the ball once during a horror stretch of eight head-to-head defeats in a row, and were thumped 41-31 in clearances and 135-108 for contested possessions during the 112-point rout in round 21. The Power were again on top at the clearances 34-28 while the hosts took out the contested possessions 119-115 on Friday night, but this time the Swans were able to limit the damage with intense pressure and punish their bogey side on the outside. The Swans blew away the Power with sublime kicking and swift transitions, even if they will still want to tidy up their work at stoppages in the decider next week.

SYDNEY                       4.0       9.1       13.7      14.11 (95)
PORT ADELAIDE         2.3       4.6       6.9       8.11 (59)

GOALS
Sydney: Amartey 3, Papley 3, McDonald 2, Warner 2, Heeney 2, Lloyd, McLean
Port Adelaide: Rozee 2, Burgoyne, Burton, Rioli, Georgiades, Dixon, Boak

BEST 
Sydney: Heeney, Gulden, Blakey, Rowbottom, Warner, Florent
Port Adelaide: Boak, Burgoyne, Rozee, Sweet, Butters

INJURIES 
Sydney: McDonald (ankle)
Port Adelaide: Nil 

SUBSTITUTES
Sydney: Robbie Fox (replaced Logan McDonald in the fourth quarter)
Port Adelaide: Francis Evans (replaced Jackson Mead in the third quarter)

Crowd: 44,053 at the SCG