YOUNG Sydney Swans forward Isaac Heeney looms as a major factor in his side's premiership chances after another brilliant performance against Port Adelaide at the SCG on Saturday.
Heeney starred in the Swans' 67-point demolition of the Power with 25 possessions - 16 of those contested - five inside 50s, four contested marks – more than any player on the ground - two goals and five tackles.
In his third game back after being managed in round 16 and 17, the 20-year-old showed he'll be a dangerous partner for star forward Lance Franklin for the rest of 2016, and a headache for opposition defenders in the finals.
Coach John Longmire said that Heeney is in the best form he's seen since the start of the season.
"He was full of energy today and he's a massive competitor," he said.
"He was leading up, hitting the ball hard and he was back to his best, it's a great sign for us.
"Early in the year he was playing pretty well, he was launching at the ball like he was today, and that’s his strength.
"He's so composed when the ball hits the deck too, he's able to launch at it and still be first at the crumb, which is a unique skill to have.
"He was certainly doing that today and competing at ground level pretty well."
Five talking points: Sydney Swans v Port Adelaide
The Swans smashed Port in the first term, kicking 6.5 while holding the visitors to the only scoreless first quarter in their history.
Illustrating the domination of the home side, they won the inside 50 count 22-4, with the Power fighting a losing battle against a wave of Swans runners.
It was a different story in the final term when Port kicked the only goal of the term, but Longmire said he wasn't worried by the way his side ran out the game.
WATCH: Heeney takes charge in Power outing
"We wanted to finish the job but it's a 67-point win against Port Adelaide," he said.
"They're a really good team, they've been able to score heavily this year, so to be able to come away with a win like that is a really good sign.
"It was a super effort for three quarters, I mean we played a really physical brand of footy.
"The contested possessions were through the roof and we had a few sore blokes in the last quarter.
"It would have been nice to finish off a bit stronger but geez for three quarters we were pretty good."
Superstar forward Lance Franklin (knee), Gary Rohan (hip) and Harry Cunningham (knee) will need to be monitored during the week after they copped heavy knocks, but all three played out the match, and Longmire was confident they would be available to take on St Kilda next Saturday night.
